


HGW: The New Champion

by HillianLink



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-06-05
Updated: 2015-07-14
Packaged: 2018-02-03 11:48:27
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 23
Words: 111,799
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1743644
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HillianLink/pseuds/HillianLink
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sometimes, the Legendary Pokemon need some help with the whole keeping peace stuff, especially with the recent worldwide dictatorship. So, they began getting warriors, know as Champions. It started with just a few Champions, but they quickly needed more, until only one legend didn't have one, and that's where Shane comes in, but he's the only male in the Hall of Origin. Yay, great.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Sometimes, A Dark Past Can Still Make For A Bright Person

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, and welcome, to my new story. I imagine that some of you may be curious as to what HGW stands for, and if not, you probably should have been. But if you didn't, then it's alright. But, for those curious, HGW stands for Harem Gone Wrong, which is sort of like a second title for this series, if it can be called that, as it is going to be multiple different stories that don't pertain to each other. But, HGW seems like a fairly interesting idea that I came up with, so I decided to do it. What the stories are/will be are the broad idea for a harem story, but I take it and twist it using my wonderful fucked up brain, making it much different. Sounds fun, right? So, essentially what it is, is a harem story where, instead of all of the girls fawning over the main character, they pretty much hate the poor fucker for it. So, yeah, let's get going.
> 
> So, for this story, if you want a broad idea of what it is about, I advise going and reading BoatingTurtle's story 'Pokemon: Legendary Champion', and if you actually have read that, then bravo. But, of course, the story is on FFnet, so you most likely haven't read it. Anyways, I don't own Pokemon, nor do I own pretty much anything else in this story. So, let's kick this shit off.

 

* * *

**Sometimes, A Dark Past Can Still Make For A Bright Person**

"Nope. Nope. Nada." I said, throwing trash after trash out of the trashcan that I was halfway in. I got out and dusted myself off, saying, "Damn it, and not even any pizza crusts."

My name is Shane Zeich, and I'm a homeless fifteen year old Umbreon-morph. Nice fucking introduction, right? I've been homeless ever since I ran away from home when I was ten, although by the time that I left it wasn't even a home anymore, just a place for me to go to be miserable and get beaten. My father had run off with some cheap whore when I was only one, so I never knew him, but I still hated him, as he left my mother alone to raise me. By the time I was five, my mother was a raging alcoholic, leaving to go to work every day before I was awake and returning sometime around midnight, having already drank away all of the money that she had made, and ready to start beating me senselessly. So I pretty much raised myself. I ended up getting a job to pay for things that I needed. I used the money I earned to go to school, to buy food, and I even ended up saving up enough to buy myself a phone, which I still have, although it hasn't been activated for years, so it's pretty much just my way of listening to music.

I was about to go searching for food in another trashcan, when I heard a female voice yell, "Help me, please!"

I immediately took off running towards the sound, knowing that while I can't fight worth shit, I'd still be the only person that would come and help her, as the people of Black Mesa, along with a fair amount of the rest of the world, doesn't really give a shit about what happened to others, so long as they got what they wanted, and the police force is corrupt and useless. I turned a corner to see five of the previously mentioned cops encircling a woman with black hair with white and silver highlights, and she was wearing black jeans along with a black long-sleeve shirt, with silver stripes at the end of the sleeves.

"C'mon girly," one of the cops said, "just get on your knees and give us what we want and we may leave you alone."

"Please, leave me alone." The women pleaded, backing up until her back hit the wall behind her.

"C'mon," another cop said, "if you play nice, maybe we'll even keep it in; let you get a taste."

_I've had enough of this shit._

I stepped up behind them and said, "Hey, fuckers." They all whipped around to face me, so I said, "Leave her the hell alone."

They all burst out laughing, a few of them even doubling over and holding their stomach.

"Oh yeah," one of them said, when he finally composed himself, "and who's gonna make us?"

"Me." I said.

 _Or at least I hope so._ At this they burst out laughing again, which annoyed the living hell out of me.

"Alright kid," the previous cop said, "c'mon over here and stop us."

I took my phone from my pocket and began scrolling through my music.

"What the hell is this little punk doing now?" One of the cops said, motioning towards me.

"You know the saying," I said, clicking on a song, putting my earbuds in, and dropping my phone back in my pocket, "every superhero needs his theme music."

I took a fighting stance as _Wake Me Up_ by Crown the Empire started playing.

_The world keeps pushing down upon me.  
And I keep hoping for a sweet dream._

I put my right hand up and did the 'come at me' gesture, and one of the cops rushed at me.  
I sidestepped him, sticking my foot out as I did, causing him to trip.

_There's something left for me to see,  
There's something left for me to be._

I took off running at one of the other cops and delivered a quick blow to his stomach, causing him to double over, out of breath. I then nailed him on the back of the head, knocking him onto the ground, dazed.

 _We can't ponder this, world forever._  
You know we can save it, if together  
Growing, day by day to make it,  
But my time's been wasted.

I whipped around to see that the first cop had gotten back up, and he was now brandishing a knife, along with one of his comrades, while the other two left standing were holding nightsticks. One of the ones holding a stick rushed me, swinging, but I caught the weapon and pried it from his grasp and struck him over the head with it, causing him to crumple to the ground, unconscious.

_And while my eyes are open wide, I'm sound asleep on the inside._

I dropped the weapon on the ground just as I was tackled and slammed into the brick wall.

 _Wake me up, from this dream that never ends._  
Haunting me, haunting me till my bitter end.  
Wake me up, from this nightmare that I live.  
Something inside of me keeps on giving in.

The cop that had me pinned started lunging for my throat with his knife, but I brought my knee up and slammed it into his ribs, causing him to back off and double over as I heard a definite crack sound from his chest. I took this as my chance to disable him, so I kicked him in the face, sending him flying onto his back, blood flowing from his nose.

 _Well I keep searching for an answer,_  
But time will never tell, and you will never know.  
My choices are my own, but I can't choose where I call home.  
This life isn't carved in stone, this life has left me on my own.

I took a moment to catch my breath, but it was cut short when I was grabbed from behind. Without tasking a moment to think, I quickly leapt, still in my assailant's arms, and did a backflip over him, breaking from his grasp. I then kicked him in the back, sending him flying a few feet away from me.

_And while my eyes are open wide, I'm sound asleep on the inside._

I grabbed his arm and pulled it up from his body, before stomping on the elbow joint, breaking the bone, causing him to let out a scream of pain.

 _Wake me up, from this dream that never ends._  
Haunting me, haunting me till my bitter end.  
Wake me up, from this nightmare that I live  
Something inside of me keeps on giving in.

The man curled up in a ball, holding his arm, as I turned to face the other two, also seeing that the second cop had gotten back up, blood still spurting from his nose, which was bent at an odd angle.

I cracked my neck, before saying, "C'mon then, fuckers."

_WAKE ME UP!_

"Little fucking punk." The injured one said through the blood.

 _I'm wide awake,_  
I'm not afraid anymore,  
I'm wide awake,  
It's you who helped me win this war

I dashed at the injured cop, knocking his legs out from under him. He fell flat on his face with a groan of pain. I stomped on his head, causing a sickening crack, followed by him lying still.  _Holy fuck, did I kill him or just knock him out?_

 _Wake me up, from this dream that never ends._  
Haunting me, haunting me till my bitter end.  
Wake me up, from this nightmare that I live  
Something inside of me keeps on giving in.

The other two cops, one brandishing a knife and the other a nightstick, rushed at me, both swinging wildly. I managed to dodge the stick fairly easily, but the knife caught me on my shoulder, sending a few jolts of pain through my body as it cut into me, but, thankfully, it didn't feel like a deep cut. I grabbed the cop's wrist as he went to deliver a stab to my arm, but I got the knife from his hand and sent him flying back a few feet.

 _Wake me up, from this dream that never ends._  
Haunting me, haunting me till my bitter end.  
Wake me up, from this nightmare that I live  
Something inside of me keeps on giving in.

I gripped the knife firmly in my hand and lunged at the other cop, nailing him directly in the shoulder, sending the blade deep into his flesh, until it hit his bone. He dropped his stick and clutched his shoulder in pain, so I did a bicycle kick, connecting with his face and sending him flying back, unconscious. The only cop left standing lunged at me, but I easily dispatched him by knocking his legs out from under him and slamming my fist into his chest as he fell, knocking him unconscious with a few nice sounding cracks coming from his chest.

As the song ended, I took my earbuds out and pocketed them. I bent over, my hands on my knees, panting heavily, but I almost lost my balance as I felt a pair of arms wrap around me.

"Thank you so much for saving me." The woman said, squeezing the breath out of me.

"Um, yeah, no problem," I said, struggling to speak, "now could you please let go, kinda hard to breathe here."

"Oh, right." She said, letting go of me. "Sorry about that."

"It's alright." I said, taking a deep breath.

I looked at the woman and I saw her eyes tracing over me, obviously seeing how my clothes that were multiple sizes too small hugged my body, outlining my ribs perfectly.

"Arceus, when was the last time you ate?" She asked, a concerned look in her eyes.

"Um," I said, rubbing the back of my head, "that depends on what you mean by eat. The last time I ate anything was a few days ago, but the only time I ate an actual meal was about five years ago."

"That's horrible." The woman said. "You must let me buy you some groceries, as a thank you."

"No, don't worry about it," I said, "I'll survive, and besides, you don't need to do anything for me, I just helped because it was the right thing to do."

"C'mon, please let me do something for you." She said. "How about you at least let me take you out to a restaurant for one meal?"

I thought about it for a few seconds, before saying, "Alright, if you really want to."

"Yay!" The woman cheered, leaping into the air. "You choose a place; I'm new to this city."

I chuckled before saying, "Well then let me be the first to welcome you to this wonderful little cesspit that is Black Mesa."

"Yeah," she said, laughing, "it seems like such a great place to be."

"Yep." I said. "Now c'mon, I know this little hole-in-the-wall café near here that's fucking awesome."

"Lead the way." The woman responded.

We walked through the city in silence, not that we would have been able to hear each other to begin with, with all of the sounds of city life, along with the sounds of crimes occurring almost constantly. It took us about ten minutes to reach the restaurant, having to dodge cars running red lights multiple times. When we entered the café I saw a Gardevoir-morph behind the counter, and I could see that she was doing a crossword puzzle.

"Hey Stella." I said, waving to her when we entered.

She looked up from the puzzle and looked at us, before saying, "Why if it isn't my favorite customer. How've you been, sweetie?"

I shrugged and said, "Not too bad, I guess."

"C'mon, you know you can't fool me." She said, "I can see every rib on your body. You haven't been eating well, have you?"

"Well, living on the streets doesn't really secure me three meals a day, so not really." I said.

"Oh, you know you can always come by here and I would give you some food." Stella said.

"You know that I couldn't do that and not feel guilty, Stella." I said. "I know how things have been for you recently, and I can't imagine that Ben getting sick has helped much."

"Ah, so you heard about that." She said. She sighed, saying, "Yeah, it hasn't really helped too much, but I can manage, so long as he pulls through it."

"Isn't there medicine for it?" I asked.

"Yeah, but it costs almost ten thousand dollars." She said, sighing. "Anyway, what brings you here today?"

"Believe it or not," I said, motioning to the woman, "my friend and I have come to have some lunch."

"I was wondering if you knew that you had a shadow." Stella said, coming out from behind the counter and walking over to us. She stuck her hand out and said, "Hello, my name is Stella, and I run this fine establishment."

The woman shook her hand and said, "Diana."

_So that's her name. I probably should have asked her at some point, but that seemed to resolve itself._

"It's nice to meet you Diana." Stella said. "So, if you two want to get yourself a booth, I'll go grab some menus."

We sat at the booth closest to the door, and I took this chance to look around, seeing that we were the only customers. Stella came back a minute later, two menus in hand, and sat them down in front of us before walking away.

"Wow," Diana said, looking around, "it looks like hole-in-the-wall is right. We're the only people here."

I shrugged and said, "Yeah, but sometimes unknown and small means some of the best food, and this is absolutely a case of that."

"So I've heard." She said. "So, since you are obviously this city's local food connoisseur, what do you suggest getting?"

I thought for a second, before saying, "Have you ever had home-made Farfetch'd soup and homemade milkshakes?"

"No, I have not," Diana replied, "but that sounds really good."

"Very well." I said. I raised my voice slightly to where it could be heard in the rest of the café, before saying, "Stella, if you're free, we are ready to order."

Stella came over and said, "Honey, you know I'm always free around here. What'll it be?"

"Two of your number fives, with two chocolate shakes, please." I said.

"Alright kiddo, that'll be right out." She said, before going through the door behind the counter.

"So, what exactly do you mean by homemade?" Diana asked.

"Well," I said, "Stella and her husband live on a farm outside of the city, and everything she uses to make food comes from there, so it's not only home-made, but it's also home-grown."

"Cool." She said. "So, who was that Ben person that you were talking about?"

"Oh, that's her son." I said. "He's currently sixteen and he's had Pokerus ever since he was nine."

"But I thought that Pokerus only affects Pokemon." Diana said. "And isn't it actually a good thing?"

"It can actually affect morphs in rare occasions." I said. "And it's anything but good to them. It can be fatal in some cases, it could just put the afflicted in a coma in other cases, or it could just make them really sick, it all depends on which strain you get. And, of course, Ben has the one that can kill you, which is just such good luck for Stella."

"Wow." Diana said. "That must be horrible."

"I imagine it is." I said, sighing. "I used to hang out with the kid, but since he got sick he's been bed ridden. I spoke to him a few times over the phone a few years ago, and he sounded really bummed out about it. They've been trying to save up enough money for the medicine, but it's really expensive for any strain, and the fatal one is the most expensive."

"That sucks." Diana said. "Here, why don't we try to get on a different topic? I never caught your name earlier."

"Shane." I said. "Shane Zeich."

"That's an odd last name." She said.

I shrugged and said, "Well, it's actually just one that I came up with on my own. I never really wanted to go by either of my parent's last names."

"Well why not?" Diana asked.

I sighed and said, "That's a story that I don't really want to get into right now. Let's just leave it at my dad wasn't really good at his job and my mother and I never saw eye to eye, mostly because she always saw through the bottom of a bottle and I only ever saw through puffed up flesh."

"Oh." She said. "I'm sorry."

I shrugged and said, "Meh, don't be. It's all in the past."

Diana opened her mouth to say something, but was interrupted by Stella coming over with a tray of food.

"Here you go." She said, sitting the food on the table.

"Thanks Stella." I said.

"My pleasure, hun." She said, going back to the counter. "Just pay on your way out."

I ate a spoonful of my soup and sighed as I felt the warm, delicious liquid hit my tongue, before falling down my throat.

"Wow, this is really good." Diana said, taking a bite of her own.

I laughed, before saying, "I told you it was."

"Well, you certainly weren't lying." She said.

We continued eating, making small talk the whole time. When we were both done we sat our dishes back on the tray.

"That was one of the best meals I've had in a long time." Diana said.

I laughed, saying, "Yeah, Stella's an awesome cook. Anyway, we should probably go ahead and pay."

"Of course." Diana said, grabbing the ticket. "Don't worry about it, I said I'll take care of it and I will."

"C'mon, at least let me cover the tip." I said.

"No, I said that I'll get all of it," she said, "and I will."

She reached into her pocket and pulled out a black wallet. She opened it and pulled out a twenty, before sitting it on the table.

"Anyway, shall we leave now?" She asked.

"Sure." I said, standing up.

Diana stood as well and began walking towards the door, saying, "Bye Stella, it was nice meeting you."

"See you two later." Stella replied.

Pausing for a second before leaving, I pulled a ten dollar bill, the only money in my possession, out of my pocket, before sitting it on the table with the twenty.  _Not like I'll need it where I'm going._  I then followed Diana out of the restaurant. When I exited, I saw Diana standing a few feet away, to my right, so I went over to her.

"Listen, it's been really nice meeting you," she said, "and I can't thank you enough for saving me, but I have an appointment soon."

"It's alright." I said. "If you need to go, then you need to go."

"Thank you again for saving me." She said, hugging me, standing on her toes slightly as I was a few inches taller than her. As she pulled away, she said, "And always remember Shane, your past doesn't decide your future. As you've proven today, sometimes a dark past can still make for a bright person."

As soon as she pulled away, she turned around and took off running down an alleyway to the right. I followed her, wanting to ask her what she meant, but when I turned the corner I was greeted with a dead end.

"What the fuck?" I said, completely confused. "Where the hell did she go?"

I went down the alley to see if there was some door that I couldn't see, but found nothing. Deciding that it'd probably be better to just leave it alone, I left and began walking down the street.

* * *

I was sitting on the top of a tower, the tallest building in Black Mesa. I looked down and saw the ground, a dizzying fifty stories down.

"This tower should prove to help with what I'm trying to accomplish." I said. I laughed, and said, "Arceus, that sounded so fucking stupid."

I sat there, thinking. Thinking about my life, about my mother, but most of all, thinking about what has led me to this moment. As I was about to stand up, I had a thought.

"Fuck it; I've always liked stupid little dramatics, and besides, I'm pretty good at singing." I said. "That, and this seems fairly fitting."

I took my phone from my pocket and put my earbuds in. I then put on _Bullet_ by Hollywood Undead, and started singing along with it.

 _My legs are dangling off the edge,_  
The bottom of the bottle is my only friend,  
I think I'll slit my wrists again and I'm gone, gone, gone, gone.  
My legs are dangling off the edge,  
A stomach full of pills didn't work again,  
I'll put a bullet in my head and I'm gone, gone, gone, gone.

_Gone too far and yeah I'm gone again,_   
_It's gone on too long, tell you how it ends,_   
_I'm sitting on the edge with my 2 best friends,_   
_Ones a bottle of pills, ones a bottle of gin,_   
_I'm 20 stories up, yeah I'm up at the top,_   
_I'll polish off this bottle, now it's pushing me off,_   
_Asphalt to me has never looked so soft,_   
_I bet my momma found my letter, now shes calling the cops,_   
_I gotta take this opportunity before I miss it,_   
_'Cause now I hear the sirens and they're off in the distance,_   
_Believe me when I tell you that I've been persistent,_   
_'Cause I'm more scarred, more scarred than my wrist is,_   
_I've been trying too long, with too dull of a knife,_   
_But tonight I made sure that I sharpened it twice,_   
_I never bought a suit before in my life,_   
_But when you go to meet God, you know you wanna look nice._

_So if I survive, then I'll see you tomorrow, yeah I'll see you tomorrow._

_My legs are dangling off the edge,_   
_The bottom of the bottle is my only friend,_   
_I think I'll slit my wrists again and I'm gone, gone, gone, gone,_   
_My legs are dangling off the edge,_   
_A stomach full of pills didn't work again,_   
_I'll put a bullet in my head and I'm gone, gone, gone, gone._

_We hit the sky, there goes the light, no more sun, why's it always night?_   
_When you can't sleep, well, you can't dream,_   
_When you can't dream, well, what's life mean?_   
_We feel a little pity, but don't empathize_   
_The old are getting older, watch a young man die,_   
_A Mother and a Son and someone you know, smile at each other and realize you don't,_   
_You don't know what happened to that kid you raised,_   
_What happened to the Father, who swore he'd stay?_   
_I didn't know 'cause you didn't say,_   
_Now Momma feels guilt, yeah Momma feels pain,_   
_When you were young, you never thought you'd die,_   
_Found that you could but too scared to try,_   
_You looked in the mirror and you said goodbye,_   
_Climb to the roof to see if you could fly._

_So if I survive, then I'll see you tomorrow, yeah I'll see you tomorrow._

_My legs are dangling off the edge,_   
_The bottom of the bottle is my only friend,_   
_I think I'll slit my wrists again and I'm gone, gone, gone, gone,_   
_My legs are dangling off the edge,_   
_A stomach full of pills didn't work again,_   
_I'll put a bullet in my head and I'm gone, gone, gone, gone._

_I wish that I could fly, way up in the sky,_   
_Like a bird so high,_   
_Oh I might just try,_   
_I wish that I could fly, way up in the sky,_   
_Like a bird so high,_   
_Oh I might just try,_   
_Oh I might just try._

As the song ended, I took my earbuds out and pocketed them. I stood up, sighing and looked over the edge again, resisting the sense of vertigo. I stood at the edge, completely rigid, before stepping off with my right foot, and beginning my descent, the wind whipping around me, until I felt a large amount of force on my whole body and faded into blackness.

* * *

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, this was fun, and possibly slightly depressing. I don't know if it was, but if you read the aforementioned story, than you know where this is going. And, before anyone yells at me for it, I know that the main character is normally a human, but I didn't want to do that, so if that keeps you from enjoying the story, then too bad. Hopefully the next chapter will be up soon, as I can't wait to get going on this idea, as it is awesome, in my opinion. Till next time, I'm HillianLink, and I approve this message.


	2. Y'know, You're Really Fucking Weird

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you guys enjoy the new chapter, now double the length (for the record, I'm not kidding, the last chapter was a little over 4k, notes included, while this one is 8.7k, notes not included).

 

* * *

**Y'know, You're Really Fucking Weird**

I woke up to see a white ceiling, lit up with white hospital-esque lighting that seemed to come from nowhere. I sat up, sore all over my body, and looked around. I was sitting in what actually did resemble a large hospital wing, with multiple hospital beds stretching to my left until it hit a wall. The room that I was in seemed to be completely made of white marble, with a white door at the far end of it, along with a few doors on the wall opposite me. I swung my feet off of the side of my own bed, my black combat boots hitting the floor rather loudly.

"Wow," I said, my voice echoing in the empty room, "I never expected sub-circle two to be so white. And clean, for that matter."

"Well, that's because you aren't in the Forest of Suicide, Shane." I heard a familiar voice say.

I turned towards the door to see Diana standing there, holding a black backpack and a pair of shoes similar to mine.

"Diana," I said, "what are you doing here?" As soon as I said this, what she said sunk in and I asked, "Wait, then where the hell am I?"

"You are in the infirmary of the Hall of Origins." She said, walking over to me.

"Okay then," I said, "why am I here?"

Diana sighed, before saying, "I advise you sit down, as this may be quite odd."

"Umm, okay." I said, sitting back down on the hospital bed. "I'm all ears."

She sat the bag and shoes on the ground at the foot of my bed before saying, "First, I should probably return to one of my other forms, as a visual may aid you in understanding the situation."

I sat there, confused as to what she meant, as a swirling black aura appeared around her. When it cleared, Diana was gone, and in her place was Darkrai herself, wearing the exact same clothes that Diana was.

"What the hell?" I asked, shocked.

"What's the matter," Darkrai asked, obviously relishing in my reaction, "have you never seen a legend before?"

"What the hell happened to Diana?" I asked.

"Well, to put it simply, I am Diana." She said, before sitting down on the bed next to mine.

"W-what?" I asked, completely baffled.

Darkrai sighed, before saying, "Here, let me start at the beginning. As you can tell, I am Darkrai, one of the legendary Pokemon and the reaper of souls. I, along with my fellow legends, have three different forms, a human one, a morph one, and a standard Pokemon one, all of which we can change into at our leisure. While we normally are in our morph form, we do occasionally switch to our human forms to roam the world of the mortals, and mine is Diana. Are you following me so far?"

"Um, yeah." I said, still confused. "But that still doesn't explain the reason as to why the hell I'm in the Hall of Origins. I mean, I killed myself, for Arceus' sake. Shouldn't I be in Hell instead of the home of the gods?"

"I was getting to that." Darkrai said. "Just listen and I shall explain. I assume that you have noticed the fact that the whole world has been taken under control by an allied group of gangs, correct?" I nodded, so she continued, "Well, I imagine that you also know that, other than their normal tasks, it is also the legends job to maintain balance and peace all across the world. But, as of late, these gangs have made it rather difficult for us to do so effectively, so we have enlisted in some help, in the form of mortals who possess traits that we think will aid in our task of keeping peace. These mortals are called Champions, and when they become Champions we make them Demi-legends, to where they never age, but are not completely immortal. The Champions are personally chosen by one of the thirty five legends to be offered the chance to leave their life behind and be trained by the legend to become a skilled warrior, who will then serve the legends in our mission. Are you still following me?"

"Yeah, I think so." I said. "But what does any of this have to do with me?"

"I was getting to that." She said. "All of the other legends have chosen a Champion by now, but I have yet to do so, as I am slightly pickier than the others. You see, my job as the reaper has made me truly see the different sides of mortals and how they behave under different circumstances, along with their true emotions, so I have learned by now that you cannot always judge someone by how they react to one thing, so I have been searching for the perfect person to be my Champion. And I believe that that person is you, Shane."

"What?" I asked, shocked. "Why me? What have I done to convince you that I'd be a good Champion?"

"Well," Darkrai said, "I have watched you for many years now, carefully scrutinizing everything that I have seen you do, and I believe that you would make a wonderful Champion."

"Don't I have to be a good fighter to be a Champion?" I asked. "I mean, all of that shit in the alley was just a fluke. I went in there not expecting to come out alive."

"I already knew this," she said, "which only helps to prove my point. You threw yourself into danger, a danger that you had never hoped of surviving, just to help a random woman that you had never even said a word to."

"Okay then." I said. "So what, am I just a Champion now, or something?"

"No, not quite yet." She said. "As I said, you are offered this. If you do not accept, then I will allow you to continue to where you were originally intended to go, with this entire conversation completely wiped from your memory. So, this leads me to my question: would you like to become my Champion, and to help myself and the other legends maintain peace in the world?"

I thought about it for a second, before sighing and saying, "Fuck it, I'm already dead, might as well."

"Awesome!" Darkrai yelled, before wrapping her arms around me. She let go of me and said, "That means that I need to give you your uniform."

"Uniform?" I asked, curious.

"Don't worry," she said, picking up the backpack and shoes and sitting them on my bed, "I promise that you'll like it. And I even got you some now boots, seeing as yours are looking pretty beat up"

"Okay then," I said, getting up and grabbing the bag and shoes, "so, where do I go to change?"

"There's a bathroom over there." She said pointing to one of the doors on the wall near me.

"Alright." I said, entering one.

"Oh, and I advise that you take a quick shower as well!" Darkrai yelled from the other side of the door. "No one likes the smell of death."

"Alright!" I yelled back.

I took my phone from my pocket and sat it on the sink counter, along with the backpack and shoes. I then stripped down, leaving my clothes in a pile in the floor, and got in the shower, turning the water on. I shivered as the cold water hit me, soaking my fur in a matter of seconds. I kept the water cold, always preferring it anyways, and began bathing. When I was finished, I got out, shaking myself slightly to help dry off. I opened the cabinet under the sink and found it stocked with towels, so I got one out and began drying off. When I was done, I threw the towel in the hamper next to the sink, before grabbing the bag an opening it up. I started taking the clothes out, and as I got deeper into it, I began to recognize them.

"Um, Darkrai," I said, "what's with the clothes?"

"What's the matter, do you not like them?" She said back.

"It's not that," I said, "Trust me, I like them. But they seem slightly familiar."

"Yeah, I know. I sorta planned for that." She said, laughing.

I sighed, before beginning to get dressed. When I was dressed, I put my phone in my pocket, pulled my new boots on, and, seeing nothing else to do with them, shoved my old clothes and shoes in the backpack. I threw the bag over my shoulder, before exiting the bathroom.

"See," Darkrai said, still sitting on the bed, "I knew that you'd look good in them."

I sighed, before saying, "Okay then."

I was currently clad in a pair of black jeans and a black tank top, with a single black sleeve going down my left arm, topped with a black shoulder pad with a Luxray shaped doorknocker-esque attachment on the front.

I sighed, saying, "Are you kidding me with this? You do recognize this outfit, right?"

"Of course I do. I mean, I am the one who designed it, along with your weapon. Which reminds me, wait here." She said, before dashing out of the room.

"I swear to fucking Arceus," I said, through gritted teeth, "she better not fucking come back with what I think she will."

She returned a few minutes later, a long, broad package in her hands.

"Here you go." She said, handing me the wrapped weapon.

I sighed, saying, "I know what it is, don't I?"

"Yeah, probably." She said, sheepishly.

I opened the packaging, revealing, as I had guessed, a large buster sword, with a black obsidian blade.

"Yep." I said, sighing. "Fucking thought so."

"Aww c'mon," Darkrai said, nudging me with her elbow, "don't say you don't like."

I sighed and said, "Okay, your right, I do like it."

"That's the spirit." She said. "Now c'mon, you've gotta go meet your fellow Champions."

"Alright then." I said. "What do I do with the sword?"

"First off," Darkrai said, "never refer to your weapon as 'the sword'. You need to give it a name."

"Umm, okay." I said, starting to think of a suitable name for my weapon. After a few minutes, I decided on one, saying it aloud, "Strife."

At this, Darkrai laughed, saying, "Well, look who's getting into the costume now." When she finally stopped laughing, she said, "Okay, now you have two choices. You can either just keep it with you or you can make it dematerialize and call it to you when you want it."

"Okay, how do I do the second option?" I asked.

"Well, you pretty much just tell it to disappear, and it will." She said. "And when you want it back, just tell it to reappear. None of the Champions have been able to at first, but why don't you go ahead and give it a try?"

"Alright." I said. I held the sword out and said, "Strife, leave me." To my astonishment, Strife actually disappeared in a flash of white light, so I said, "Strife, return." This caused my weapon to reappear in my hand, with another flash of light, prompting me to say, "That's fucking cool."

"Wow," Darkrai said, "I can't believe that that actually worked. A weapon doesn't normally obey the owner until they have proven themselves in battle, which prompts the weapon to trust the wielder. Strife must really trust you for some reason."

"I wonder why," I said, "seeing as I can't fight worth shit. Anyways, as cool as that is, I'd prefer to keep Strife on me, so I would I go about doing that?"

"Well, just act like you're going to put it in a holster on your back and it should pretty much just stick to you." She said.

I did as I was told, and as I felt the blade touch my shirt, Strife seemed to become attached to the shirt itself.

"Okay," I said, "once again, that's pretty fucking cool."

"And, once again, I told you so." Darkrai said.

"Really? Because I don't remember you saying that." I said.

"Okay then, I thought it, same thing." Darkrai said. "Anyway, let's go. You can just leave the bag here; it'll be taken care of."

"Okay then." I said, dropping the bag on the ground, before following Darkrai out of the far door and into a completely white hallway. As we started walking, I asked, "So, is there anything that I should know before I meet the others?"

"Well, just one minor thing." She said.

"Okay, shoot." I said.

"Well, they're kinda all females." Darkrai said.

I froze in my tracks, saying, "What?"

Darkrai stopped as well and looked back at me, before saying, "Yeah, you're the only male. Sorry."

"Okay," I said, "and why is this exactly?"

"Well, as you probably don't know, all of the legends are females," she said, "so the others all decided that it would be best to choose someone that they could more closely bond with and relate to."

"Wait, all of the legends are girls?" I asked. "But almost all of the history books say that some are males. Hell, they even say that you're a guy."

"Well, as you can see, that's not true." Darkrai said. "You need to keep in mind that all of this knowledge was discovered by mortals when the world was still a male biased world, so a lot of things were changed, and obviously they couldn't stand the thought of their gods being females, so they changed the facts, and the truth was just lost in time."

"Well, that's fucking weird." I said, as we started walking again.

"Meh, you sorta get used to it." Darkrai said.

"So, how do you think that the others will react to a guy being your Champion?" I asked as we neared a large arched opening in the wall to my left.

"Y'know, I'm not quite sure." She said. "Especially since nobody, not even Arceus knows."

"Well, then this should be fun." I said.

We turned through the opening, and I found myself in a large white room, filled with other morphs, and within a matter of seconds, seventy sets of eyes were locked onto me.

"Yep, pretty fun." Darkrai said, nervously. "I hope you aren't shy."

A phoenix, stepped out of the crowd, before saying, "Darkrai, what is this male doing here?

_Well, that sounds pretty fucking sexist._

"Oh, Moltres, um," Darkrai said, "this is Shane. Say hello Shane."

"Hello." I said, waving nervously.

"I didn't ask its name," Moltres said, "I asked what the hell it's doing here."

_Wait. It?_

"Um, you do realize she just said my name, correct?" I said. "And besides that, I'm not an it, as we've just established."

"Shut up, male! If I wanted you to talk, I would have told you to!" Moltres yelled, before sending a blast of fire from her beak, aimed directly at me.

I stood there, the fire flying at me, but right before it hit me, Darkrai stepped in front of me and stuck her hand out, blocking the fire, to where all I felt was a minor increase in temperature.

"Do not speak to him or treat him that way!" Darkrai yelled, when the flames cleared. "And if my Champion would prefer to be called his name rather than referred to as if he were some object, then that should be honored."

Moltres froze, before saying, "What did you just call that thing?"

"I called him what he is." Darkrai responded, sternly. "My Champion."

The effect was immediate. There was an uproar, the room seeming to explode in noises of outrage, and the few things I could pick up seemed to be along the lines of insulting me, calling me a disgusting beast, and some slightly incoherent shouting about some tradition.

This went on for a minute or so, before the crowd was silenced by a voice yelling, "Silence!"

At this, the room grew silent, as a white stag, walked forward.

"Darkrai," she said, stepping towards us, "are you sure this is the one you want?"

"Yes, lady Arceus," Darkrai said, nodding, "and he has already agreed, and he has already receive his gear."

"Very well then." Arceus said, nodding in return. She raised her voice, saying, "Darkrai has chosen Shane to be her Champion, and so it shall be. If there are any complaints, I advise you get over them, as you have no say in the matter and complaining will accomplish nothing."

Darkari bowed slightly, and signaled for me to do the same.

I did so, and Darkrai said, "Thank you, lady Arceus. And I promise you, you won't be disappointed in him."

Arceus walked past us, towards the door, saying, "I should hope not, or else there will be consequences."

 _That doesn't sound very nice._ Almost as soon as Arceus left the room, the noise picked back up, with the same insults flying around, now accompanied by sounds of outrage at Arceus allowing me to become a Champion.

"Enough!" a voice yelled, quieting the crowd again. All eyes turned towards a bright blue bird at the front of the crowd, who said, "Lady Arceus has allowed it, and no matter how much we disagree with her choice, it is not under our jurisdiction to alter it, therefore I advise we drop it." The speaker then turned to Darkrai, saying, "Do not worry, I have faith that you have chosen well."

"Thank you Articuno." Darkrai said. "Now, if you all would excuse us, I am going to go give Shane a tour of the Hall."

No one said anything else, so Darkrai turned around and exited the room, with me following her closely. By the time we were a few feet from the door, I already heard the crowd start up again.  _Holy shit, they really don't like me._

When we were back in front of the infirmary door, Darkrai sighed, before saying, "I can't believe that they're being that fucking sexist."

"Yeah, they didn't seem too pleased about this." I said. "What were they talking about with a tradition?"

"Oh, nothing." She said, waving her hand. "That's just some made up bullshit that they thought of. Since all of the other Champions are female; they decided to start calling it a tradition, but it's all a fucking lie."

I could almost feel how angry Darkrai was, so I wrapped my arm around her shoulders, saying, "Calm down, it's not that big of a deal."

She shook of my arm off and said, "Yes, it is. They were treating me like I can't make my own decisions, and they were treating you like some disgusting piece of shit that they kicked off of their shoes, and that's not even bringing into account the fact that they'll start getting their own Champions to treat you like that. Doesn't that make you even slightly angry?"

"No, not really." I said. "But you have to remember, I've been treated like that my whole life, so a few more people doing so doesn't really affect me."

Darkrai sighed, before saying, "I guess you're right. I'm sorry for forgetting that, and I'm sorry for snapping at you. It's just that their bullshit infuriate me sometimes."

"It's alright, I understand." I said. "Now, what was that about showing me around?"

"Oh, right." Darkrai said. "I almost forgot. Well, as you already know, this door here leads to the infirmary, which is run by the Eon duo, Celibi, and Shaymin. While we normally just use Heal Pulse for any injuries, if it's something as serious as a broken bone, then they don't feel comfortable doing it, as they are worried that they'll mess up and cause even more damage, so we use normal ways of fixing them, such as casts."

"So, what's the most serious injury that you guys have had to deal with?" I asked.

She thought for a second, before saying, "Well, I remember a few years ago Chelsea, Moltres's Champion, ended up breaking both of her arms in a five on one fight that she thought she could win. Ever since then, anything larger than a team of two against a solo fighter has been banned."

"Owch." I said. "That sounds painful."

Darkrai shrugged, saying, "I don't know, it may have been. She wasn't awake to feel it. They broke as soon as she hit the ground, and the force knocked her out as well."

"Okay, well before I change my mind about being a Champion," I said, "why don't we continue on with the tour?"

"Okay." She said. We started walking, as she said, "The room we were previously in was the meeting room, although we rarely use it."

"Then why was everyone in it?" I asked.

"They were actually having a meeting for once." She said.

"Why weren't you there?" I asked.

"Well, for starters, I was waiting for you to wake up." Darkrai said. "That, and pretty much every meeting has to do with Champion tasks, and since I didn't have a Champion until today, I just never go."

"Alright then." I said, as we turned a corner.

As we continued walking, we drew closer to a pair of white double doors.

"And this," Darkrai said, opening said doors, "is the courtyard."

The doors swung open, revealing a large stretch of grass, with a pond in the center, and a large oak tree in the center of that. On the left and right side of the courtyard were walls, showing that the Hall itself made a partial square around the yard. Directly across from me was a forest, stretching as far as I could see.

"Holy shit." I said, breathlessly.

Darkrai giggled, saying, "Pretty cool, right?"

"Are you kidding me?" I said. "I've never seen this much greenery in one place, and I've never seen any that didn't look like it was dying. Even the nicest park in Mesa doesn't have shit on this place."

"Thank you," a voice said behind us, "I try to keep it as nice as possible."

We turned around to see a small green fairy hovering behind us, a smile on its face.

"So I see." I said.

"I don't believe we ever got a proper introduction." She said, sticking her small hand out. "I'm Celebi, the guardian of the forests."

"Shane Zeich." I said, shaking her hand.

"Well, unlike my fellow legends, I must say that it is nice to meet you, Shane." Celebi said. "And I hope that you don't hate the others for what they said; there just not used to the idea of a male being around. I'm sure that once they get to know you, they'll warm up to you."

"I hope so." I said, sighing. "So, did you have to actually plant any of these trees, or are they all natural?"

"Well, contrary to popular belief," Celebi said, "the Hall of Origins isn't in some other realm; it's actually just hidden deep in this natural forest."

"Yep, and Celebi here helps with that." Darkrai said. "She uses her powers to keep the forest alive, which has caused a lot of Pokemon to migrate to it and make their homes in it, and they all help keep this place hidden."

We were suddenly interrupted by a Meganium-morph, clad in white jeans and green shirt, and a Mawile-morph, wearing gray sweat pants and a black shirt, rushed past us, knocking Darkrai off of her feet, but I caught her before she could hit the ground.

"Thanks." She said, standing back up.

"Maggie! Alexis! Come back here!" Celebi yelled after the duo.

They skidded to a halt, before turning around and coming back.

"We've taught you better than that." Celebi said, sternly. "Had Shane not caught her, Darkrai could have gotten hurt. Now, what do you think you were doing?"

"Sorry," the Meganium said, head down, "Alexis and I were just really eager to get outside, and I guess we just didn't notice you."

"Very well," Celebi said, "now, I want you to apologize."

They both sighed, before saying, in unison, "We're sorry Lady Celebi. We're sorry Lady Darkrai."

"I want you to apologize to Shane, as well." Celebi said, crossing her arms over her chest.

The Meganium, Maggie, opened her mouth, most likely to argue, but Celebi shot a glare at her, causing her to reconsider.

Sighing, Maggie said, "I'm sorry, Shane."

Celebi nodded, before turning to the Mawile, Alexis, and saying, "I didn't hear you apologize."

Alexis looked up, smirking, and said, "And I won't. A male doesn't deserve my apology."

"I am a legendary," Celebi said, taken aback, "and I am therefore superior to you. So apologize."

"No." Alexis said. "You may be a legend, but you aren't mine. Just because I apologized to you doesn't mean that you can make me apologize to that filth."

As soon as this left her mouth, the two girls took off running towards the forest.

"What the hell did she just say to me?" Celebi said, clearly outraged. "Just because she's not my Champion doesn't mean that she doesn't have to listen to me."

She moved to fly after them, but Darkrai grabbed her arm, stopping her.

"Calm down, Celebi." She said. "It doesn't matter. You know that she wasn't trying to disrespect you, only Shane."

_Well then._

"Still, I don't care." Celebi said, trying to pull out of Darkrai's grasp. "She has no right to act like that."

She ended up wriggling from Darkrai's grip, taking off over the forest after the girls.

As she disappeared from our sight, Darkrai sighed, saying, "Arceus, Alexis is going to be in a lot of trouble."

"I imagine." I said. "Thanks for that nice little confidence booster, by the way."

"Sorry about that." She said. "But we both know that I'm right."

"Yep." I said, sighing. "So who's Champions are they anyway?"

"Well, Maggie is Celebi's, while Alexis is Jirachi's." Darkrai said. "C'mon, let's just continue with the tour."

"Alright." I said.

We went back inside, closing the door behind us, and continued walking. We eventually came to an opening similar to the one for the meeting room, so we entered it. The room itself, along with the contents of it, mimicked a high school cafeteria, with multiple large flat screen TVs hanging on the walls.

"As I imagine you can guess," Darkrai said, "this is the cafeteria. All of the legends take turns cooking meals, while the Champions take turns taking care of the dishes."

"So I assume that I'll have to help with that." I said.

"Well, not immediately." Darkrai said. "When a new Champion arrives, we always give them a month or two to get settled in and begin their training, and when that time is up they have to join in and help with chores."

"Although, I still wish that Arceus would reconsider the cooking routine." A voice said behind us.

We turned around to see a pink cat standing behind us.

"Seriously, would people please stop sneaking up on us," Darkrai said, "it's starting to get annoying."

"Sorry." The cat said, walking around to stand in front of us. "I didn't realize that it had happened once already." She turned to me, and said, "Hello Shane, I'm Mew, the best cook here."

"Hi." I said, waving slightly. "So, if you're the best cook here, then what's your issue with the cooking schedule?"

Mew sighed, saying, "The title of best cook isn't me bragging, trust me, it's the one that everyone here has given me. And because of this, I cook more than double the amount of times that anyone else does, and it gets pretty fucking tiring."

"Well, I could always help out if you want." I offered. "I mean, I've had to cook my own meals pretty much my whole life, so it wouldn't be too difficult."

"Really?" Mew said. She wrapped me in a hug, saying, "Thank you so much."

"Yeah," I said, "I just don't advise telling anyone that I had anything to do with the food, or else they probably won't eat it."

"Yeah," Mew said, "they don't seem to enjoy the thought of you being here. I already heard Palkia talk about trying to start a petition to get you kicked out."

"Wow," I said, "first day here and they already want to deport me and send me to Hell."

"I wouldn't say that they want the last part." Mew said.

I shrugged, saying, "Technically, whether they know it or not, they do."

Mew opened her mouth, most likely to ask what I meant, but she was cut off by Darkrai saying, "Well, it's been nice talking to you Mew, but we've gotta run. Y'know, still more of the Hall to see."

She then rushed me out of the room, leaving a confused Mew standing there.

When we were a little ways away from the cafeteria, Darkrai turned to me and said, "What the hell do you think you were doing?"

"Telling the truth." I said. "I mean, I'm already dead, so if they did kick me out, then I would no longer be a Champion and I would therefore be sent to Hell."

"Well, yeah," Darkrai said, "but we aren't supposed to mess with natural occurrences, such as disaster, disease, or death, so you're the only person here who's technically dead, and I could get into a lot of trouble if they ever found out. You have to remember, I'm the only one who even knew that you existed, so no one knows that you're dead."

"Okay, okay, I get it." I said. "I can't let anyone know about how I got here. So, how did the other Champions become Champions?"

"Just by us contacting them and offering the role to them." Darkrai said. "Now c'mon, there are still a few more places for me to show you."

"Lead the way." I said.

She led me down the halls, to another set of double doors. She opened them, revealing a large, white, circular room, with large balconies about halfway up the walls, surrounding the room, each with a ladder leading up to it.

"This is the Electronic Simulation Training Room, or, as she likes to be called, ESTR." Darkrai said.

"ESTR?" I asked, confused.

Suddenly, a hologram of a young girl appeared in front of me, startling me.

"Hello Lady Darkrai." The girl said. "May I ask who this man is?"

"Hey ESTR." Darkrai said. "He is my new Champion."

The hologram, ESTR, looked up at me; interest plastered on her face, and said, "Woah, a guy Champion? I didn't even know that those existed."

Darkrai laughed, before saying, "Well, they don't normally, but Shane here is the first. Why don't you introduce yourself, Shane?"

"Right." I said, nodding. "Hello ESTR, I'm Shane, it's nice to meet you."

"It is nice to meet you as well." She said, nodding. She then turned to Darkrai, and said, "So, Lady Darkrai, would you like for me to add him to the roster and leader board?"

"That would be nice," Darkrai responded, "thank you."

ESTR nodded, before saying, "Very well, one moment please."

She then disappeared, leaving behind nothing but a few blue particles, which soon followed.

"Okay, she is pretty fucking cool." I said. "But what does she mean by leader board?"

"Thank you." ESTR said, reappearing in front of me momentarily, before disappearing again.

"Well," Darkrai said, "in here we only have one training simulation currently, which only tests speed, and it started off as just a way to pass the time. But, the other Champions quickly decided to start competing in it, timing themselves and comparing times, but this lead to arguments about whether or not they were legitimate or not. So, to help stop the quarrels, Arceus had a leader board installed in here for the practice, but the girls eventually started using this room for mock battles, so a leader board was set up for those as well."

"Cool." I said. "This place is really fucking advanced."

"Well, of course it is," Darkrai said, "I mean, we are legends."

Suddenly, ESTR appeared before us, and said, "All done. Shane Zeich is now added to the Champion roster, along with your name, Lady Darkrai, and he has been added to both leader boards."

"Thank you." Darkrai said, nodding towards ESTR.

"Wait, how did she know my last name?" I asked.

"I can read the genetic information of every person who enters here," ESTR said, "along with their stats. And, while it was slightly difficult, as Zeich isn't your real name, I was still able to find it out."

"How did you do that?" I asked, amazed.

ESTR shrugged, saying, "I don't know, I was just searching through your info and I found it."

"Okay, even I have to say that I don't know how that happened." Darkrai said. "Anyways, would you like to check out the leader boards?"

"Sure." I said, shrugging.

"ESTR, pull up both leader boards please." Darkrai said.

"Yes, Lady Darkrai." ESTR said, disappearing again.

"So," I said, "I noticed that all of you are being addressed with the term 'Lady' in front of it. Should I start doing that, as well?"

"Well, we don't normally have anyone do it," Darkrai said, "unless, of course, they are in trouble. ESTR just does it by choice, as no one forces her to. While I don't care if you do or not, and it doesn't seem like Celebi and Mew would either, I'd still do it to the other legendaries, seeing as they already seem to not like you."

"I'll be sure to keep that in mind." I said.

Suddenly, two leader boards popped up on the walls across from us, both above the balconies, with the left one labeled 'Training', while the left one was labeled 'Combat'. Almost as soon as they popped up, ESTR reappeared before us.

"Thanks ESTR." Darkrai said. "So, here they are. As you can probably see, the number one spot on both are the same."

Looking at the two boards, I saw a picture of an Arcanine, accompanied by the name 'Chelsea' at the top of both, with the name 'Moltres' to the right of it. On the left board, I saw a time of one minute between both of the names, and on the right I saw a win/loss ratio of 33/1 between the names.

"Wow, she really knows how to clean house." I said, slightly amazed.

"Your damn right I do." A voice said behind us.

We turned to see the same Arcanine, clad in red jeans and a Blood on the Dance Floor shirt, that we were currently discussing in the doorway, along with Moltres, Articuno, and a Weavile-morph, who was wearing a light blue karate gi.

"Hello," Darkrai said, seemingly calmly, but still semi-obviously pissed, "I hadn't realized that you were training in here today."

"Well, we are," Moltres said, rudely, "so I advise you move aside. Oh, and to the male, I advise you pay attention, you may actually learn something."

The fire pair then pushed past us, heading towards the center of the room. Myself, the Weavile, Darkrai, and Articuno moved closer to the wall, even though we weren't really in any danger of getting hit, due to the sheer size of the room.

"ESTR, run the practice, now!" Moltres demanded.

"Yes, Lady Moltres." ESTR said, before snapping her fingers.

At this, a large digital timer appeared between both leader boards, followed by small, circular targets appearing around Chelsea, who now stood in the center of the room. The targets were surrounding Chelsea in a roofless cube, with three stacks of targets, going four across on each row.

"Begin." ESTR said, her voice seeming to resonate from the walls themselves.

At these words, the timer started counting up, and all forty-eight targets started spinning in a circle around Chelsea, at a rather quick pace.

I looked around, trying to find the source of the sound, and ESTR, seeing my confusion, said, "We have a PA system in the walls. I can speak through it and it is heard in here, or I can use it to play music on."

"That's pretty fucking cool." I said.

"Thank you." ESTR said, giggling.

"So, why does Moltres automatically assume that I can't fight?" I asked.

"Well," Articuno said, "you have to remember who she is. It most likely comes from the sexist personality she seems to possess."

I shrugged, before saying, "Well, she is right. I can't fight worth shit."

"Stop saying that." Darkrai said, elbowing me lightly. "You kicked those cop's asses."

"Yes, but that was luck." I said.

Suddenly, a loud buzzer went off, signaling that the training was done. We all looked up at the timer to see a time of one minute and thirty seconds.

"Holy shit, that was fast." I said.

"Damn it," Chelsea yelled, "that's not fast enough!"

"I think it's pretty impressive." I said.

"I don't fucking care about your opinion, male." She said, putting extra emphasis on the final word.

"Hey, I'm just trying to be nice." I said, throwing my hands up defensively.

Chelsea glared at me, before she started walking over to me. When she got over to me, she got in my face.

"I didn't fucking tell you to talk to me, male." She said, before cocking her fist back, and slamming it into my mouth.

As soon as her fist made contact, I felt a sharp pain in my mouth, and blood started pouring from it. The attack was followed by gasps of shock from the Weavile, Darkrai, Articuno, and ESTR.

"Son of a fucking bitch." I said, in pain. "You stupid Arceus damn whore."

"What the fucking hell?" Darkrai yelled, as I held my mouth in my hand.

"Moltres, get over here and control your fucking Champion!" Articuno yelled.

"Why should I?" Moltres yelled back. "Stupid fuck shouldn't have spoken to her."

"What the fuck did you just say?" Darkrai yelled back.

As my mouth began filling up with blood, I spat some out onto the floor, and a tooth came with it, landing in the small puddle beginning to form on the floor.

"You fucking heard me." Moltres yelled back. "You're stupid little fucking pet shouldn't have spoken."

"You little fuck." Darkrai said, through gritted teeth.

She began stalking over to Moltres, picking Chelsea up by her throat as she passed her.

"C'mon," Articuno said, "let's get you to the infirmary."

"What about Darkrai?" I asked, my mouth still filling up with blood.

"Don't worry about her." Articuno said. "Whatever happens happens. Right now, we need to keep you from losing too much blood." She turned to the Weavile, before saying, "Jesse, can you go find Celebi or Shaymin, please?"

The Weavile, Jesse, nodded, saying, "Yes, Lady Articuno."

Before Jesse ran off, I said, "I doubt you'll find Celebi around, she went after Alexis earlier."

Articuno nodded, before saying, "Very well then, Shaymin it is. C'mon Shane, let's go."

We left, the doors shutting behind us, and as soon as they closed, the room we left exploded in yelling. We started down the hall, Articuno rushing me, the shouting echoing behind us, until we reached the door to the infirmary.

"Here, go ahead and sit down." Articuno said, leading me over to the nearest bed. I complied, and she said, "Alright, I'll be back in a second."

She rushed into the bathroom and came out a few seconds later, a bathroom cup of water in one hand and a small trashcan in the other.

"Here," she said, handing me the cup and sitting the can in front of me, "get some of the blood out of your mouth."

I took a drink of the water, before spitting it out into the trashcan, with a fair amount of blood going with it.

My mouth now partially clear, I said, "How is Shaymin meant to help? I thought that she doesn't have the ability to know Heal Pulse.

"Normally, she can't," Articuno said, sitting down on the bed next to me, "but Arceus found some way for her to learn it. Now, wait here; I'm going to go try and stop Darkrai from killing Moltres."

With this, she got up and left the room. She had only been gone a few seconds when one of the other doors on the wall opened, and a Flareon-morph stepped out, holding a stack of towels in one hand and a stack of washcloths in the other. She noticed me sitting on the bed and rushed over to me, sitting what she was holding on a bed that she passed.

"Wait, your Darkrai's Champion, right." the Flareon asked. I nodded, so she said, "What the hell happened to you?"

I spat out some more blood before responding, "I had a little run in with your friendly neighborhood bitch, Chelsea."

"Here, hold on a second." She said, before grabbing one of the washcloths and entering the bathroom. She came out a few seconds later; the rag now wet, and gave it to me, saying, "Here, why don't you get some of the blood off of you?"

"Thanks." I said, accepting the rag and beginning to scrub my face.

As I did, I looked at the Flareon. She was wearing a pair of black jeans, a Pierce the Veil shirt, and a worried expression on her face.

"So, what exactly did you do to piss Chelsea off so much?" She asked.

"Hell if I know." I said, my mouth no longer bleeding. "All I did was compliment her time while she was practicing, and she fucking did this."

She sighed, saying, "That's a new level of bitchy, even for her."

"What, is she a bitch to everyone, or something?" I asked.

"No, normally just me," the Flareon said, "I don't know if you noticed while you were in there or not, but I have the worst score in everything, with my target practice time being five minutes and my win/loss a beautiful ratio of 2 to 25."

"Aww," I said, in mock sadness, "so I'm not as special as I thought."

At this, the Flareon laughed, before saying, "Whatever."

I suddenly heard the sound of muffled vibration.

"What the hell is that?" I asked.

"My phone." The Flareon said, pulling her vibrating phone from her pocket. She looked at it, before saying, "Ugh, it's Entei." She answered the phone, saying, "Hello, Lady Entei."

Through the phone, I could hear a voice say, "What is taking you so long? You know that you have training in five minutes."

The Flareon sighed, before saying, "Yes, I know. I'm sorry, but I got caught up with talking to Darkrai's Champion."

"What?" The voice said, outraged. "Don't ever talk to that male again, or I will punish you. Now hurry up and get back here before you miss training. Arceus knows that you desperately need it."

"Yes, Lady Entei." She said. She hung the phone up and set it on the bedside table, before saying, "Well, it looks like I have to go, just as soon as I put those towels in the bathroom and start the dirty ones in the washer."

As she got up, I said, "Don't worry about the laundry, I'll take care of it. You should probably get going."

"Thank you so much." The Flareon said. "The washer is in the room I just came out of, I already have it on the right settings; you just need to empty the hamper into it and add all of the shit, and then start it."

"Got it." I said, as she left.

I got up and grabbed the clean towels and brought them into the bathroom, placing them under the sink. I then took the dirty laundry, which was pretty much just what I had used that morning, and left the bathroom. I went to the other door, grabbing the washcloth that I used as I went. When I entered I saw a washer and dryer sitting next to each other, so I put the towels in and added what was needed, before starting it. I left the room and sat back down on the bed, before noticing something sitting on the table. I looked at it and saw that it was the Flareon's phone.  _She must have left it while she was rushing to leave. I should probably return it to her._  As I put it in my pocket, the door opened, and in walked Articuno, followed by Jesse and a white reindeer with a green Mohawk that fell all the way down her back, who was followed by a seething Darkrai.

"Oh, good," the reindeer said, walking over to me, "I see that you've already stopped bleeding. Now, let me just close the wound and you'll be good to go."

"Um, okay." I said.

She walked over to me and grabbed my head in her hands. My head was suddenly surrounded by a green and purple aura, and I could feel the wound in my mouth heal.

"All better." The reindeer said.

"Thanks Shaymin." Articuno said, as the reindeer left.

Almost as soon as she left, Darkrai yelled out, "That stupid fucking cunt!"

"Calm down, Darkrai." Articuno said.

"Don't fucking tell me to calm down." Darkrai yelled, spinning to face the legendary bird. "You shouldn't have stopped me. I was going to kill that stupid bitch, and her little fucking pet."

"Which is exactly why I stopped you." Articuno said, remaining calm. "Think of how angry Arceus would have been if you two had actually gotten into a fight. Now just leave the punishment up to Arceus, I'm sure she will handle it fairly."

At this, Darkrai seemed to calm down some, saying, "Whatever." She turned to me, saying, "So, your mouth better?"

"Well," I said, "I'm now missing a tooth, but other than that, it's doing pretty well."

"Good." Darkrai said, now considerably calmer. "Now c'mon, I've still gotta show you where the bed rooms are."

"Alright." I said, getting up.

We left the room, Darkrai in the lead. I thought about trying to start a conversation a few different times, but decided against it every time I looked at Darkrai and saw the pissed look in her eyes. We eventually came to a hall that was lined with doors, seventeen on one side and eighteen on the other. As we went past the doors, I saw a nameplate on each one. We came up to the farthest back door, which was unmarked.

"Well, here you go." Darkrai said. "This is your room. I already had it completely stocked with multiples of this outfit, and the attached bathroom is completely stocked as well."

"Thanks." I said. Remembering what I needed to do, I asked, "Hey, do you know which room is Entei's Champion?"

"Oh, Shelby?" Darkrai said. "Yeah, other side of the hall, just look for her name."

"Thanks." I said. "So, what did Moltres say that pissed you off so much?"

"I assume you mean besides the sexist bullshit?" Darkrai said, sighing. "She started going off, saying that you've got to be the most useless Champion ever, that I'm a horrible Legendary, and that I won't be able to train you worth shit, and I'll always be known as the worst Legendary ever since my Champion will never be anywhere near as good as hers."

As she turned around, I thought that I saw a few tears starting to form in her eyes. She began walking away, head down.

"Hey." I said, getting her attention. She turned around and looked at me, head still hung low, so I said, "Well, moping about it won't solve anything, so cut it out. What you're going to do is start training me to be best damn Champion ever, led by the best damn Legendary ever."

At this, she seemed to brighten up, and she said, "Right. Meet me in the courtyard at nine tomorrow morning, and we can start your training."

"I'll be there." I said.

Darkrai then turned on her heels and started back down the hall, a small spring in her step. I waited until she disappeared around the corner before I started walking back down the hall, paying attention to the nameplates on the doors. I eventually found Shelby's, so I knocked.

My knock was greeted by the sound of something being hit, followed by an exclamation of, "Shit, that hurt. Who is it?"

"It's Shane." I said.

"One minute." She said. The door opened, revealing Shelby standing there, rubbing her head, and she said, "C'mon in."

She stepped out of the way and I entered her room. The room itself was fairly average, with a bed on the wall to my left, a desk with a computer on it at the foot, a bookshelf to my right, a door next to that, a TV on a stand, and another door on the other side of it. But what caught my attention was the fact that the floor was covered in books, DVD cases, and CD cases.

"Doing some remodeling or something?" I asked, jokingly.

Shelby closed the door behind us, saying, "Yeah, I know that my room is messy as hell. I was looking for my phone. I can't find it and I'm starting to think that one of the other Champions took it."

"Or there's always the option that I have it." I said, reaching into my pocket and pulling out her phone.

"Where did you find it?" She asked, as I gave the phone to her. "I've been looking for it for, like, thirty minutes."

"You left it in the infirmary." I said. "And what do you mean thirty minutes? I thought you had training to go to."

"Well, I did, but Entei ended up having to go and help Mew cook, so I got off." She said. "So, I decided to come back and shower, and when I got out I realized that my phone wasn't in my jeans pocket, so I tore my room apart trying to find it."

"So I see." I said, looking around. "You mentioned that you thought that one of the others took it. Do they normally fuck with you like that?"

"Yeah, damn near all of them do." Shelby replied, sitting down on her bed and patting the spot next to her, signaling for me to join her. I complied, and she continued, "As I said, I'm the worst Champion, stat-wise, which automatically slaps a giant target on my back."

"Well, don't worry," I said, "I'm here now, which means my target is about twenty times larger. Granted, it currently seems to be on my mouth, rather than my back, but it's pretty much the same thing."

She laughed, and said, "Yeah, I guess you're right, unfortunately for you."

"Meh, I'll get over it." I said. "And you can always remember, at least we'll always have better taste in music."

"Yeah, you're right about that." Shelby said, laughing. "So, anyways, what's with the outfit?"

"Darkrai said that it's my Champion uniform." I said, shrugging.

"Champion uniform?" She said. "I didn't think that we have one."

I just shrugged, saying, "I don't know. Not like I care, seeing as the only possessions I have are the clothes and my phone."

"Well, don't worry," Shelby said, "personally, I think it looks good on you."

"Thanks." I said. "Y'know, you should probably clean your room up now."

"Yeah, you're probably right," Shelby said, "especially since Entei is my Legendary. She's so fucking strict. Almost every fucking day she comes and checks my room, and if even one thing is out of place, I get punished for it."

"Well, that doesn't sound fun." I said, as Shelby got up and pocketed her phone, before starting to clean the floor. I stood up, saying, "Therefore, I'll help you."

"No," she said, "I couldn't ask you to. You've already done enough for me."

"Okay then, let me rephrase it." I said. "I will help you, and there is nothing you can do to stop me."

Shelby sighed, before saying, "You're really weird, you know that, right?"

"Am I weird in a good way, or a bad way?" I asked.

"So far, it seems like a good way." She replied.

* * *

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay, slightly abrupt ending. Anyways, I would like to address a few things that people may have some minor issues with. First off, I know that the main character is normally Arceus's Champion, but I prefer Darkrai, because Darkrai is bad ass. Second, I apologize, but I really don't feel like putting what the Legendary Pokemon are wearing, as they're all just wearing normal, everyday clothes that are similar to the color of there body, so if this irks you to a great extent, get over it. Third, the reason I say thirty-five Legendary Pokemon is because fuck Gen. Five and Gen. Six. I can't stand those fucking Legendaries, with the exception of the Tao Trio, who I think are pretty awesome. And don't even get me started on Gen. Six. That has to be the most bullshit, worthless Generation, with the exception of about four or five new Pokemon. Although, I do have to say that Gen. Five is pretty good.
> 
> Ditching this rant for now, I also want to address a few questions that some people may have. First, I know that most authors who do this story accept OC requests, but I'm not sure if I will. I like the idea, but I just don't really ever do, having only done it once, and one reason is because I hate just fucking throwing in characters. I prefer to give them some reason to exist, other than just because. I don't know, I may do requests at some point, but it's doubtful. Second, mostly as a warning, as I said in chapter one, this isn't a harem story, so don't think of it as one. It is a Harem Gone Wrong story, although if you really just can't read a story without sex happening, don't worry, you won't be left in the dark, as there will be at least one lemon later on.
> 
> So, that's about it for now. No one dare bring up what I already addressed, or I will hunt you down and force you to listen to every Blood on the Dance Floor song in existence, and trust me, I don't want to do that. Not because it would hurt me, hell no, you'll get headphones, but because no one should be subjected to that rock-wannabe electro band who can't make a fucking song without it involving rape. Hope everyone enjoyed, and I'll see you sometime within the next month.


	3. I Fear That Your Optimism Is Misplaced

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let us begin.

* * *

**I Fear That Your Optimism Is Misplaced**

I dropped to the grass, falling roughly, as my attack was easily parried by Darkrai. She sighed, exasperated, as I flipped from my stomach to lying on my back, sitting Strife down next to me.

Darkrai bent down, holding her hand out to me to help me up, but I just pushed it away, saying, "Don't bother, I might as well just lay here for a little bit. It's not like I'll actually accomplish anything if I get up."

"Don't say that." She said, sitting down next to me.

"Why the hell not?" I said, sighing. "We've been training for almost seven months, and I still haven't gotten any better. Hell, I haven't done a single thing since I got here. Besides, it's not like I'm even wanted here."

"C'mon, you know that that isn't true." Darkrai said.

"Oh really?" I said, sitting up. "There are seventy of us here, thirty five legends and thirty five Champions, and if you take me out of that and that leaves sixty nine. You like me, Celebi likes me, and Mew likes me, while Articuno, Anna, and Arceus just seem indifferent, and all of the others, being sixty three people, despise me. That means that I'm hated by more than ninety percent of this places population. So, please remind me, how am I not unwanted?"

"Don't worry about the others, their just sexist assholes." She said. "And besides, you and I both know that those aren't the only ones who like you." I looked at her, confused, and she said, "C'mon, did you really think that I wouldn't know about you and Shelby, did you?"

"What?" I asked, shocked. "How did you find out?"

Darkrai giggled, before saying, "I have my ways."

"Please don't let anyone else know," I pleaded, "Especially Entei. She'd kill Shelby, before taking me out as well."

"Relax," she reassured me, "your secret is safe with me. But, speaking of you two, aren't you running a little late for your meeting?"

"What?" I said, worried. I quickly dug my phone from my pocket and, seeing the time, said, "Shit, your right. When I told her the time, I hadn't expected our training to take this long."

"Well, how about this," Darkrai said, "I'll let you leave early, but you have to promise to start trying harder in our sessions. Agreed?"

"Agreed." I said, leaping up and grabbing Strife. "Thank you so much, Darkrai."

I sheathed Strife and started to run out of the clearing that we were training in, when Darkrai said, "Shane, wait." I turned and she put her hands on my shoulders, before saying, "Listen, I know that you aren't exactly very popular here, and it kills me to see you beat yourself up about it, when the others already do that enough."

I sighed, saying, "Did you just start this conversation to depress me and make me hate myself even more, or is there some other reason?"

"Of course there's another reason." She said. "I want you to remember, no matter what they say or do to you, they aren't any better than you."

"It's nice to know that someone here has some belief in me," I replied, "but I fear that your optimism is misplaced."

"No, it isn't." Darkrai said, pulling me into a hug. "I promise you, you'll be one of the best Champions this hall has ever had. Mark my words."

"Whatever." I said, pulling myself from her arms. "Anyway, thanks for letting me go early, but I should probably get going now."

With that, I dashed through the trees. I immediately started for our meeting place. Ever since the first day that I got here, Shelby and I have been friends, but we had chosen to keep it a secret, as we both knew that it would call down more of the others wrath, especially Entei, and neither of us wanted that. As I was running, my mind began to stray to other matters.  _I still don't understand why Darkrai chose me, or why she keeps trying to cheer me up. It's not like I don't understand that I'm useless and unwanted, and I'm honestly surprised that I am actually still here, as I would have thought that the others would have come up with some stupid bullshit reason to get me kicked out._ My mind continued to be clouded with these thoughts until I reached the small clearing. As soon as I entered the clearing and saw the familiar Flareon sitting on the grass, a small basket next to her, all of my dark thoughts and worries were immediately expelled from my mind, to be replaced by joy.

"Hey." I greeted Shelby, sitting down across from her. "Sorry for being late. Our training took a little longer than I had anticipated, but Darkrai let me go early."

"It's alright," Shelby said, moving the basket to where it was between us, "I actually just got here, as well. Entei did another fucking room check, and apparently we hadn't cleaned up as well as we thought we had the other night, as she found a chip in the floor."

"Sorry." I said. "Next time we decide to watch movies all night, we can do it my room."

"Thanks." Shelby responded. "While Clint Eastwood is a wonderful actor, his movies aren't worth having to do everyone's laundry for two weeks."

"Seriously?" I asked, slightly surprised. "That's your punishment for one fucking chip?" She nodded, so I said, "Seeing as it's my fault as well, I'll help you."

"No," she said, holding her hands up, "you don't have to help. I mean, you already help me with any other punishments I get."

"I don't care." I said, shrugging. "I mean, that's what friends are for, right?"

"Not normally, no." She said. "Why, did your friends ever help you this much?"

"I, uh," I started awkwardly, "I never really had friends."

"Oh." Shelby said, sounding equally awkward. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be." I said, shrugging. "I mean, I never really had time for friends, anyway."

"Okay then." She replied, awkwardly. She opened the basket, saying, "Anyway, I'm starving, so let's dig in."

With that, she pulled two sandwiches from the basket, before throwing one to me. We sat there, eating, and talking about our respective training sessions that we had earlier. At one point, we both just got quiet, and I could tell that something was on Shelby's mind.

Just I was open my mouth to question her, she cut me off, saying, "Hey, Shane?"

"Yes?" I replied.

"I was just thinking," she said, "what you said about friends made me realize something."

"Okay." I said, slightly confused. "What?

"Well, we haven't really talked about your life before being a champion." She explained. "I mean, we've had multiple conversations about my life, to the point where you know almost everything about it, but you haven't really ever brought up your own. How come?"

I just shrugged, saying, "There isn't really anything to talk about. I pretty much just existed."

"C'mon," she insisted, "please. I feel like I barely know who you really are."

I sighed. She had a point. Over the time that we've been friends, we had had multiple conversations about her and her life. I had learned that she, along with all other Champions, were technically in their teens, although some of them had been a Champion for quite a while. Shelby was the newest Champion, other than me, having only been here for about two and a half years before I got here. She also confirmed that I was the only Champion here that was technically dead, while all others had been contacted by their legends and are given the offer, which for them would involve leaving their loved ones behind. While most had found the thought of never being able to see their friends and families again a disastrous prospect, but others had seen it as an opportunity to help the world, or just escape a shitty life. When the Champion had left their family, the family was merely told that they had volunteered to help the legends, and it was left at that. I had discovered that Shelby had become a Champion for the former reason. She was fifteen, and in the process of her first year in high school, when she was asked to be a Champion. She accepted the offer, having always had the tendency to try and help others whenever possible.  _I guess it truly isn't fair. I know all about her, yet she knows nothing of me._

"Alright," I said, coming to a decision, "I'll tell you about me, but you must promise to tell no one, as it could get Darkrai into a large amount of trouble."

"Alright." She agreed, obviously confused, but sounding intrigued all the same.

I sighed, before starting the story of my fucked up life. When I was finished, Shelby just sat there, silent.

After a few seconds, she said, "Wait a minute, so you're technically dead?"

"Yes." I said, nodding. "I did, in fact, die from jumping off of Black Watch Tower."

"Holy shit." She said. "Then how are you here?"

I shrugged, before saying, "I don't really know, to be honest. I didn't really feel like questioning it at the time, so I just let it slide."

After a few more seconds, Shelby said, "I'm sorry."

"What do you have to be sorry about?" I questioned.

"I guess that I'm just sorry for how shitty your life was, and how it all came to an end." She replied, shrugging. "And I'm also sorry about asking you to talk about."

"Don't worry." I reassured. "I have no issue with talking about my life. I mean, it sucked horridly anyway, so why would I care about discussing it?"

"I don't really know, I just assumed that it wouldn't exactly be one of your favorite topics." She replied.

I just shrugged, saying, "I've just grown to live with it now, really."

"So," she said, "hypothetically speaking, what exactly would happen to you if you were kicked out of being a Champion?"

"I don't know," I said, shrugging, "I assume that I would be sent to my original destination."

She was about to say something, when my phone went off. I pulled it from my pocket and saw a text from Darkrai, which I read.

"C'mon," I said, pocketing my phone and rising, "Mewtwo's crew is back from their scouting mission, and apparently Arceus is calling a meeting of all of the legends and Champions."

"Alright." Shelby said, closing the basket and rising as well.

She grabbed the basket and we took off for the Hall. When we entered the Hall, Shelby quickly dropped the basket off in her room, while I headed for the meeting room, keeping us apart to make sure that we weren't seen together. I entered the room and was struck by a sickly sweet smell, which seemed to cause a knot to appear in my stomach and making me feel slightly tired. I just blocked it out, not really caring much about questioning it, and found my seat next to Darkrai, making Strife disappear from my back as I walked.

"Any idea what this is all about?" I asked, quietly.

"Nope." She replied. "All I know is that Mewtwo is back, and they have important news."

At this moment, Arceus entered the room, followed closely by her Champion, a Lopunny named Anna, Mewtwo, and her own Champion, an Espeon by the name of Jasmine. As they entered, the room fell quiet, and I looked over to where Entei to see, to my relief, that Shelby was able to make it without being late. Mewtwo and Jasmine took their seats, while Arceus and Anna sat at the center table.

When they were all seated, Arceus cleared her throat, before beginning, "I assume that many of you are curious as to why this emergency meeting has been called. The reason is, that the Organization had stepped up their brutality."

As she spoke, four large projector screens, one pointing to each wall, came from the ceiling, followed by a small hole opening up in each fall, facing a screen. As she continued, the lights dimmed to near off.

"As you all know, for the past few months the Organization has been secretly eliminating anyone whom apposes them, without alerting the public." She began. "We have discovered, thanks to the work of Mewtwo and Jasmine, that they have recently lost all use of discretion and secrecy, having opened up hundreds of concentration camps scattered across their territory, which they use to keep their opponents as prisoners."

At this, pictures began flashing onto the screens, some of large, stone buildings, others of other people, morphs and humans alike, all of them starved and almost completely nude, covered in blood, mud, and bruises. The slideshow continued with pictures of this nature for multiple minutes, before finally ending with a few shots of mass graves, all of which appeared to contain anywhere between hundreds and thousands of dead bodies, all in similar state to the living beings that we were shown. As the screens retracted and the room slowly brightened, I looked around and saw looks of disgust and horror plastered to every face in the room.

"Therefore," Arceus continued, "we have decided that we must hurry and defeat them quickly. We have decided that all training must be sped up and intensified, and any Champions that have proven themselves to be skilled in combat are to go on missions to collect intel or to attempt to liberate some of these camps."

With that, she left the room, with Anna trailing behind her. The room stayed in shocked silence for multiple minutes after they left, until someone cleared their throat.

"Very well." Giratina said, speaking up. "Arceus and I have already discussed new training regiments, so I would like all legends to report to me immediately to receive their Champion's schedule."

As soon as the words left her mouth, the room was filled with the sounds of scraping chair legs, as everyone rose from their seats, eager to begin training. Darkrai and I were the last pair to make it to Giratina, but we were eventually able to approach her.

"What training does Shane have?" Darkrai asked, curtly.

Ever since the ordeal with my first day here, Darkrai had tried to keep interaction with most of the other legends to a minimum, as they have since begun treating her like a child that shouldn't be allowed to make her own decisions, so it was no surprise that she was wanting to get away as soon as possible.

"Ah, yes," Giratina said, scanning the paper that was in her hand, "the male." At this, I saw Darkrai roll her eyes, but she said nothing as Giratina replied, "He is to report to the simulation room every day for practice."

"Is this immediate?" Darkrai asked.

"No," Giratina replied, "it will begin at eight."

"Okay." Darkrai said, nodding, before we both left. When we were in the hallway, she checked her phone, before saying, "It's only about seven right now, so you can have the next hour off."

"Thank you." I said, before leaving to go outside.

I began pacing the courtyard, not able to think of anything else to do. After a few minutes, though, I was distracted by a dismaying sight, and I stood still as I watched Chelsea, Heatran's Champion, a Blaziken named Jenna, and Maggie walk towards me.

When they reached me, I calmly asked, "Yes?"

Instead of answering normally, Chelsea just growled out, "Shut up, male. I thought that I made it damn clear that you are not to speak to me unless I address you."

I merely sighed internally, having to fight the urge to roll my eyes.

"So, male," Chelsea continued, once again using her favorite name for me, "I assume that you got a new training schedule?"

"Yes." I replied, simply.

She scoffed, before saying, "I don't see any reason that you should've been given a session. It's not like you'll ever be an effective Champion, anyway. You'll always just be another useless male that thinks that he can do what is obviously a woman's job."

With this, they all started laughing, and I sigh, before saying, "Whatever."

They stopped laughing, and Chelsea glared at me, saying, "What did you just say?

The question seemed to be extremely redundant, as she delivered a swift punch to my jaw before I could even answer, knocking me on the ground. I brought my hand to my mouth, hoping that I wasn't bleeding.

Chelsea then sent a kick flying directly to my stomach, knocking the air out of me, as she said, "Never use that tone of voice with me again!"

She was about to kick me again, when a voice yelled out, "Chelsea!"

We all turned to see Anna striding towards us, a stern look on her face.

When she reached us, she said, "There better be a damn good reason as to why you just hit Shane, Chelsea."

"Oh, so now you're taking the male's side?" Chelsea said.

"I am taking no sides." Anna responded. "I am merely doing my duties as Arceus's Champion, which includes enforcing the rules, one of which is that there will be no bullying."

"So, what are you going to do about it?" Chelsea replied, sarcastically. "Are we gonna fight, or something?"

Anna glared at Chelsea, before saying, "No, but I will be sure to report your name to Arceus. And don't ever let me see you bullying anyone else again, or there will be hell to pay."

With that, she walked away, leaving a seething Chelsea standing there.

"I can't stand her fucking attitude." She said. "She only acts like that because she's Arceus's Champion. We all know that I could kick her ass in any fight, and I could prove it if she'd fucking accept the challenge."

She then stalked off; Jenna and Maggie following her.

I let my head fall to the ground, before closing my eyes and saying, "Fuck. At least I'm not bleeding again."

"Need help?" A voice asked.

I opened my eyes to see Shelby standing above me, a slightly pitying look on her face.

"I'm good." I said, sighing. As I stood up, I said, "Is it just me, or is she much bitchier than usual?"

"Not that I'm trying to defend her or anything," Shelby said, as I dusted myself off, "but it isn't completely her fault this time."

"What do you mean?" I asked, curious.

"Well, um," she began, awkwardly, "around this time is a heat season that affects a majority of the Pokemon in the world."

"Okay." I said, confused. "But your morphs, so how does that affect you?"

"Well, I guess that you're an exception to this rule," Shelby said, "as you had already technically died, but when we all became Champions, to make it to where we don't age, they had to use Pokemon DNA, and they still haven't found out a way to do it perfectly, so some of the normal Pokemon genes still get in there. So, that causes us Champions to be effected by heat."

"I guess that that would explain the smell in the meeting room. And the effect it had on me." I said, remembering the sweet scent in the room, as we walked towards the trees. "So, are the legends affected by heat, as well?"

"No," she said, "for some reason they don't go into heat, the lucky bastards."

"Oh." I said. "Wait a minute, doesn't that also mean that you are in heat, as well?"

"Yes." Shelby said, sighing. "But I know what effects the scent of a female in heat has on males, and I wasn't sure whether or not it would do anything to you, so I decided to hide it, anyway."

"Oh." I said. "I'm sorry."

"You have nothing to be sorry about." She reassured. "It's just something that happens."

"I know," I said, "but that doesn't mean that I'll be alright, knowing that you're in pain constantly."

Shelby sighed, before saying, "Yeah, it really fucking sucks. Although, I'm slightly worried about you. You mentioned that it had an effect on you, correct?" I nodded, so she continued, "Well, that can't be good, seeing as we both know what the heat scent does to males."

I just shrugged, saying, "I don't really care about that. Whatever happens, I can repress it and keep from acting on my primal instincts, don't worry. The only thing that I'm not really looking forward to is that this apparently means that I'll be getting my ass kicked even more for a few months."

She shrugged, before saying, "Well, it beats the alternative. I mean, they could just spend all of their time wanting to fuck your brains out."

"Yeah, I guess." I said. "I just can't stand knowing that my only friend is in constant pain and I can do nothing about it."

"Well, you technically can do something about it." She said. I looked at her, shocked, and she laughed, before saying, "Calm down, I'm just joking. Don't worry, I would never ask you to do something like. I mean, I could never force you into doing something like that, especially if you didn't want to do it."

"Alright, then." I said.

Shelby then stopped and grabbed me by my shoulders and turned me to face her, taking me by surprise. Due to the close proximity, I could now clearly smell her heat scent, and I had to resist the urge to act upon my instincts.

"But I need you to listen to me." She said. "I should probably prepare you for what effects this will have on us. Since we are in heat, our emotions are heightened, which includes the three most prominent ones that you will see for the next four or five months, being hatred, lust, and love."

"Wait a minute," I interrupted," the heat lasts for four or five months for you guys? It normally only lasts for two or three for Pokemon."

"Yes." Shelby said. "Now, don't interrupt me. Unlike the others, who will have their hatred towards you heightened, I will most likely have my lust and love towards you heightened, merely due to the fact that you and I are friends. You must be prepared for this. In this time, I may make advances on you or, if it gets extremely bad, even try to get what my body wants by force. When this happens, I want you to remember that this is not me doing it, but the heat. Do not succumb to your instincts, okay? No matter what I say, you have to keep me from doing anything that could harm you, or our friendship. Do you understand?"

As she was speaking, I could feel my resolve weakening, and I felt myself slowly drift into a numb state of mind. I was jolted back to reality by a sharp smack on my face.

"See?" Shelby said. "That's exactly what I'm talking about. I could tell that you were drifting off. Please, for both of our sakes, you have to constantly remain alert and block out the scent. Can you promise me this?"

"Of course." I said.

"Let me hear you say it." She demanded.

"I swear that, no matter what you say or what my body says," I began, "I will not give in to my primal urges. I promise that, no matter how much I hate the thought of it, I will not help your heat and I will leave you to suffer."

"Thank you." She said, releasing me with a sigh. "That takes a load off of my mind. I mean, you don't know how difficult it already is to be in this close of proximity to a male and not want to fuck you into unconsciousness."

"Um, your straying into some gray territory there, Shelby." I said, awkwardly.

"Right, sorry." She said, shaking her head. "But this is what you may have to put up with for this time. Anyway, let's get off of the topic. So, what new training do you have?"

"At eight I have my first round with ESTR." I replied.

"Awesome!" Shelby exclaimed. "That means that we get to train together!"

"So now I get to embarrass myself in front of you, as well as Darkrai and anyone else whom is with us." I said, sighing. "Great."

"Stop being so pessimistic." She said, putting an arm around me. "I'm sure that you'll do fine. I mean, there's no way that you could do worse than five minutes."

"I doubt that." I said.

We continued walking through the forest, just talking, until I looked at my phone and saw that it was getting close to eight.

"Hey," I said, pointing this out, "we're cutting it close. We should probably start heading back."

"Alright," Shelby replied, "you lead the way."

We started back to the Hall, and by the time we reached it, it was already time for training to start.

"C'mon, let's hurry." I said.

We took off sprinting down the hallway towards the simulation room. I entered first, followed by Shelby, to try and not raise suspicion. In the room, I saw Darkrai, with Entei standing close by, and, a few feet away, I saw Jirachi and Alexis, with ESTR standing in the center of all of them.

I went over to stand next to Darkrai, who quietly said, "Finally you're here. I assume that you two were out together?"

"Yes." I responded quietly. "And, when we're done with this, you and I need to have a serious conversation. I'm slightly pissed at you."

She looked at me, confused, but chose not to voice her confusion.

"Alright," Jirachi said, as Shelby went to stand with Entei, who shot her an accusing glare, "now that those two are here, who will go first?"

"Why not Alexis?" Darkrai responded. "I mean, you always say that she is one of the best, and that she just needs to hit the course to show it."

"Very well." Jirachi replied. "Alexis, center field."

The Mawhile went to the center of the room, as the rest of us retreated to the edges to watch.

"ESTR, start the practice!" Alexis demanded.

"Yes, Master Alexis." ESTR said, before snapping her fingers. "Begin."

As Alexis began, I turned to Darkrai and asked, "Master?"

"When given an order," Darkrai explained, "ESTR has been told to refer to all Champions as 'Master',"

"Doesn't that seem slightly degrading?" I asked.

Darkrai just shrugged in response, before turning back to watch Alexis. When she finished, the large timer read out two minutes exactly. We all watched the leader board as Alexis's name was moved from the twenties up into number eleven.

"As I said," Jirachi said, "one of the best."

"Very well." Entei said. "So, who's next?"

"How about your Champion?" Jirachi said, motioning towards me. "I mean, he has yet to even do the course."

"Of course." Darkrai said, nodding. She turned to me, saying, "Shane, if you will."

I nodded and stepped out into the center of the room.

"ESTR," I said, "could you please bring up the target practice?"

"Of course, Master Shane." ESTR replied.

 _I need to talk to her about the whole 'Master' bullshit. Way too degrading._ After a few seconds, the timer appeared on the wall and the forty eight targets surrounded me.  _Well, here goes nothing._

"Begin." ESTR stated.

As soon as I heard these words, I began swinging wildly at the spinning targets. When it was all done, I looked up at the timer to see a time six minutes and four seconds. I let out an exasperated sigh, as the room exploded in laughter from Entei, Jirachi, and Alexis.

I started to walk to the edge of the room, my head down, but I stopped as Entei yelled, "No, go ahead. Take another round, I haven't laughed this much in months."

I looked at Darkrai for an answer, but she just shrugged. Deciding that there was no harm in it, I returned to the center of the room, and had ESTR call up the targets. I started at her go and starting attacking randomly again. When I was down to just a few targets left, I suddenly felt an intense heat on my left leg. Looking down, I saw that Entei had apparently launched a Fire Blast at me without me noticing it. My suspicions were confirmed, as I looked over and saw Jirachi, Alexis, and Entei laughing again, and Shelby staring at me in shock and Darkrai glaring at Entei in rage. I quickly stopped and started trying to smack the fire off of my jeans, trying to keep them from being destroyed. As I did this, I felt my fur and skin starting to burn, and a dull, burning pain began, surrounding my calf. I saw Shelby and Darkrai start for me, but I sent a quick glare to Shelby, telling her to remain where she was. She ignored my silent demand, and rushed over to me anyway. By the time they reached me, I had managed to put out the flames and I was examining the burnt cloth and lack of fur that extended from just above my boot to the bend in my leg.

"Are you alright?" Shelby asked, dropping down to look at my leg.

"Yeah, I'm fine." I reassured.

We both looked up as an outraged voice yelled, "Shelby!" We saw that Entei was staring at Shelby, outrage and anger plastered to her face, as she said, "What the hell do you think you are doing with that male?"

"I'm checking to make sure that my friend is okay." Shelby responded, indignantly, as she stood up.

Entei glared at Shelby, before saying, "What did you just say?"

"You heard me, bitch!" Shelby yelled back, taking everyone by shock. "Shane is my friend, and I wanted to make sure that your stupid fucking prank didn't hurt him."

Entei began slowly stalking her way over to us, but Shelby met her halfway.

"I advise that you pay attention to how you address me." Entei said, getting in Shelby's face. "After all, I am your legend."

"I don't care what the fuck you are." Shelby responded. "I'm tired of you being such a stupid fucking sexist cunt, you bitch."

I could tell that Shelby hit a major chord with this, as Entei clinched her fist and brought it back, about to hit Shelby. Without thinking, I used Extreme Speed and dashed in front of Shelby, easily catching Entei's fist in my hand. Everyone looked at me in shock, and I heard a few gasps around the room. As I stood there, Entei's fist in hand, I became aware of the difference in our heights. I wasn't exactly towering over her, but my six foot four height allowed me to be a little more than a head taller than her. And this realization absolutely intimidated her, as I saw a welcome emotion in her eyes. Fear.

"I advise," I growled out, putting pressure on Entei's fist, "that you pay attention to how you treat my friends. Understood?"

She didn't answer, so I put even more pressure on her hand, eliciting a small whimper of pain from the fire dog.

"Are we clear?" I growled out.

"Yes." She said, whimpering again. "Crystal."

"Good." I said, releasing her hand.

As soon as her fist left my hand, she dropped to the ground, holding her hand. Without waiting for anyone to respond, I stalked past Jirachi and Alexis, being sure to glare at them as I passed, and exited the room. I turned and began walking down the hallway blindly, the rest of the Hall quiet. I was only walking for a minute or so, when Shelby and Darkrai caught up to me. Darkrai opened her mouth to speak, but I held my hand up to silence her, and turned into the nearest door, which happened to be the cafeteria. As we entered, I saw Mew coming out of the kitchen, and she stared at us, confused, but I simply waved to her. I leaned up against the wall, before signaling to Darkrai to continue.

"Shane, what the hell was that?" Darkrai asked.

I just shrugged, before saying, "I don't enjoy people threatening my friends. Therefore, I was fixing it."

"What are you guys talking about?" Mew asked, coming over to us.

"Shane here damn near broke Entei's hand." Darkrai explained.

"What?" Mew asked, shocked. "Why the hell did you do that?"

"She found out the we have been hanging out together," Shelby explained, "and she didn't exactly take too kindly to it. So, I stood up for myself, and she was about to hit me, when Shane intervened."

"But I thought that you said that you couldn't fight?" Mew asked. The rest of Shelby's explanation seemed to hit her then, as she said, "Wait a minute, you two are friends?"

"Yes." I said. "We've been friends since I got here, but we chose to keep it a secret, as we knew that Entei would react this way. And, for the record, I can't fight; I just had the element of surprise."

Darkrai sighed, before saying, "Shane, I really don't understand you. I mean, you kick the asses of multiple cops to save me, but when I bring you here, you can't fight worth shit."

"Listen," I said, "I don't understand me either; I just roll with whatever the fuck happens. I don't know why I have these sudden outbursts of heroism and luck, but that's all that they are: luck."

"Whatever." Darkrai said, sighing again.

"Hey," Shelby said, "I think I'm gonna go for a walk. Shane, you wanna join me?"

"Sure." I said. "Go ahead and go on, I'll be out in a second."

She nodded, before leaving the room. Mew just gave me a slightly confused look, before following suit. Darkrai went to leave as well, but I stuck my arm out in front of her, barring her way.

"I believe that I said that we need to talk." I said.

"Alright." She said, turning to me. "What about?"

"Why didn't you warn me?" I asked.

"What do you mean, warn you?" Darkrai asked, confused. "Warn you about what?"

"About the next five months." I hissed out. "About the heat season."

A shocked expression spread across Darkrai's face, and she covered her mouth, saying, "Holy shit, Shane. I am so sorry. I forgot all about it; I'm not used to having a guy around here."

"Yeah, well it would have been nice to know." I said.

"Please don't tell me that someone tried to do anything to you." Darkrai said.

"No, don't worry." I reassured. "Shelby and I had a conversation about it already."

"How are you going to deal with being friends with her during this time?" She asked.

I sighed, saying, "I'm not quite sure. I mean, obviously she's affected by the heat, and, as I am a male, I'm obviously affected by the scent of it. We already had a fairly close call when she was just standing near me, and I couldn't help but smell it when we were in the meeting. We both just decided that we'll have to keep our urges and instincts under control."

"Do you know how having a male around will affect the others?" Darkrai asked.

"I don't know." I said. "I already ran into Chelsea, and it mostly just seemed to make her even more of a bitch, which, as Shelby pointed out, is much better than the alternative."

"Yeah, I guess." Darkrai said. "I'm just worried for your health."

"I know." I said, wrapping her in a hug. "And I thank you for that." I released her from my arms, before saying, "Anyway, good night, I guess."

"Right." She said, nodding. "Good night."

With that, she left the room, and I left shortly afterwards, and headed for the main entrance. When I got there, I saw Shelby sitting on the steps, staring at the sky.

"Ready to go?" I asked, coming up behind her.

"Yep." She said, rising. "Let's go."

* * *

It was later that night. Shelby and I had gotten back into the Hall at about eleven, and we had had a slightly awkward conversation about what happened, followed by an extremely awkward hug in thanks for us standing up for each other, that I could tell was full of awkwardness, as we fought to resist our urges, as my nostrils were filled with her heat scent. After this, i had went back into my room to change clothes, before putting my plan into action. I entered the simulation room, closing the door silently.

"Hey, ESTR." I whispered. "You up?"

"Of course." ESTR's voice said, as she appeared before me. "I never sleep."

"Alright." I said. "Could you please keep it down a little, I'm trying not to wake everyone up with this."

"Very well, Master Shane." She said, quieter this time.

"And stop with the 'Master Shane' bullshit." I said. "Just call me Shane, I can't stand that degrading term."

"Very well M- Shane." She replied. "So, do you mind if I ask what you are doing here this late?"

I sighed, before saying, "I wanted to get some late night training in, if possible. Is that alright?"

"Of course." ESTR said. "Would you like me to pull up the leader board and timer, as well?"

"Sure," I replied, "just put the timer on mute, and please don't use the PA system."

"Of course." She replied, as I stepped into the center of the room.

Within seconds, the targets appeared around me. I sighed, steeling myself for what I was about to do.  _I think that it's about time to show them that I can become something._

"Begin." ESTR said, as the targets started moving.

* * *

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Holy shit, fuck the English language. If there is one word pair that annoys the fuck out of me, it is "affect" and "effect". I mean, seriously, do we really need both of them? They mean almost the exact same fucking thing! Oh well, minor rant over. Anyway, I honestly loved writing this chapter, granted I enjoy writing every chapter for this story. I've actually noticed something odd about the story, though. With my other stories, especially NSMNS, I occasionally have issues with getting 3k+ words, but this story just flows so easily, that I have yet to run into any issues with it. Oh well, I have no complaints, and I hope that none of you guys do.
> 
> But, in regard to the chapter, did anyone actually think that I would omit the whole heat ordeal? I mean, obviously I put my own twist on it, as this is a HGW story, so I sorta had to. And, please, if anyone of you guys actually care, I highly advise leaving a review telling me what to do with Latios. If I don't get one of the choices to get a majority vote by the next update, which I've actually already planned to include Latios, than I will just go with the third option. So, if you have an opinion on it, tell me, please.
> 
> Anyway, until next time.


	4. Fun Fact: Bullets Hurt Like Hell

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so here is another update. So, after looking at the first chapter again, I decided that I hate that fight scene, and I wanted to let everyone know this. I don't know why I'm letting everyone know this, I just am. Anyway, there is more fighting in here, and I hope that you guys find it to be good. So, thanks to a reviewer on FFnet, Diamondstor2, I actually chose for Latios to be a tomboy. Enjoy.

 

* * *

** Fun Fact: Bullets Hurt Like Hell **

I landed on my feet, perfectly sticking the jumping kick that I had performed, just as the final few spinning targets disappeared. I looked up at the timer, causing Strife to disappear from my back at the same time, to watch mine and Darkrai's names moving from the bottom of the leaderboard to the very top, now showing off an impressive time of fifteen seconds.

"Wow," ESTR said, appearing next to me, "that's even better than last night."

"Yeah," I panted out, surprised by the score myself, "I honestly didn't expect to do this well."

"Well, your skill has been increasing greatly over the past month," she said, "so I guess it isn't completely difficult to believe."

I shrugged, before bending down and grabbing my bottle of water off of the floor. I unscrewed the cap, before draining the whole thing. While the score is absolutely something to be proud of, due to my desire for secrecy, it wasn't like anyone would actually see it. More importantly, this score finally convinced me that I was ready to put my latest plan into action tomorrow night. I grabbed my shirt from the floor, before heading for the door.

"I think that that's enough for tonight, ESTR." I said.

"Of course, Shane." ESTR replied, walking next to me. "Would you like me to follow our standard procedure?"

"Yes, thank you." I responded. I continued walking for the door, but stopped before leaving, and said, "Oh, and ESTR?"

"Yes?" The girl asked me.

"I think we're ready." I said. "I want to start, tommorow."

"Are you sure?" She asked. "Not that I doubt you, I just want to make sure that you are ready for what will be needed of you."

"Yes, I can do it." I reassured, nodding. "Just be ready, I'll be here at midnight."

"Very well." ESTR replied, before disappearing.

I left the room, and as I did so, the record time that I had just scored disappeared, followed by my ranking being moved back to the bottom of the leader board. I started back for my room, anxious to finally shower. As I was walking, I pulled out my phone and checked the time.  _Fuck, it's already five? I have to be up at seven for training tomorrow. Oh well, I'll get over it, I guess._ I came to my door, and turned the knob, but, just before entering, I took a glance back and my eyes fell on Shelby's door. I don't know why I did this, I just did, and I couldn't explain it to myself. Shaking my head to clear it, I stepped into my room and headed for the bathroom. I stripped down, before turning on the water. After a few seconds, I stepped into the cold water, feeling it wash away the layer of sweat that was coating my body. As I bathed, I stretched into the air, popping my back.

"Holy shit, that felt good." I gasped out.

I looked down at my body and saw the muscle definition that had formed over the past month. Ever since my first run with the simulation, I had returned to the room to train every night, which had not only made me improve drastically, which I kept hidden from the others, much to ESTR's confusion, but it also allowed me to learn new things about ESTR. One such thing was that she could form more than just standard targets, having shown off by forming large buildings, some of which she even completely furnished, along with showing me an interesting advanced training program that she had been working on in secret, where she made actual human forms to fight against, and, after using that program during our secret meetings for the past month, we had concluded that it worked perfectly as it functioned like a real living being, learning your moves if you fought the same way repeatedly through multiple fights; this also allowed us to come to the conclusion that, after the training, I am actually fairly adept at fighting, as I can win fights against four at a time without even being touched. It also allowed me to learn that, by hooking up to her main power source, you could transfer her into any electronic device that you could think of, which would be beneficial to my plan for later. I has also discovered that she could erase things from the leader board, once given the proper command, hence how I was able to keep my awesome scores a secret. I stepped out of the shower, sighing.  _Well, I guess tomorrow's the night. I'll finally live up to my job._  I quickly threw on a pair of jeans, not wanting to take the time to get full dressed, before collapsing onto my bed, hoping that I would actually be able to get at least one hour of sleep. I was tired as hell, but I was happy all the same.

* * *

I was jolted from my sleep by a knock on my door. I groaned, before rolling out of my bed. I hit the floor, landing face first, and I let out a quiet gasp of shock and pain. I rose from my position and went to the door, rubbing my nose. I opened the door to find Shelby standing there, bouncing on the balls of her feet. I expected her to speak, but she instead seemed to be distracted, her eyes focused on my chest. I looked at her face, and I could clearly see that her eyes were clouded with lust.  _Yep, that figures. Arceus, I fucking hate her heat._

I snapped my fingers in front of her face, saying, "Yo, Shelby. Come back to reality, please."

She shook her head, before staring at me, saying, "Oh, what? Right, sorry."

"Don't be." I said, moving over to my dresser and grabbing a shirt from it. I threw it on, saying, "After all, I should have known better than to do that in the first place." I turned to her, and said, "So what's up?"

"Darkrai wanted me to tell you that she's had to push off training until nine." She said. "Something about a meeting, or some shit."

I breathed a sigh of relief, before saying, "Awesome. So, since we actually have time, do you wanna grab some breakfast?"

"Sure." Shelby said, nodding. "I'll get it, you can just go wait outside."

"Thanks." I responded, before she turned and started down the hall.

I put on my boots and started to lace them up. Ever since Shelby went off on Entei, she sort of abandoned her as a Champion, so, after some convincing on my part, I had gotten Darkrai to accept her as a second Champion, and we had all agreed to tell no one, especially Arceus, as we had no idea how she would react. I left my room, shutting the door behind me, and started for the exit of the Hall. Now that the metaphorical cat was out of the bag, Shelby and I saw no need to hide our friendship, so we had started openly spending time with each other, which included eating together. Although, that was slightly hindered by my existence. I couldn't exactly enter the cafeteria when it was a normal time for a meal, as the other Champions, obviously, made no attempt to cover up there heat, and I simply couldn't handle the sheer density of the scent with multiple Champions in one room. So, after it almost caused a scene, which ended up with me having to lock myself in my room for a day to calm down, Shelby and I had decided to start eating outside, in the fresh air, and she went and got our food from the cafeteria. Unfortunately, some of the others had noticed the effect that the heat scent had on me, so they used this to their advantage to fuck with me even more. Some of the Champions who saw me as less of a piece of filth and more of a pet began wearing tight and skimpy clothes, obviously hoping that I would fuck up and go after them. Meanwhile, the others, such as Chelsea, had decided that it would be much more fun to torture me in a different way, using mine and Shelby's relationship to their benefit, which elicited comments to myself, such as 'disgusting horny beast' and multiple comments about how they would rather suffer through the heat, rather than have sex with a male; along with comments directed at Shelby, such as, 'whore' and 'trash fucker'. And then there were the Eon twins. Latias and Latios. Fuck them. They were by far the worst, as they not only insulted myself and Shelby, but they also discovered a new, advanced, and even sicker way of fucking with us. They used Shelby as their weapon. Since they are legends, they obviously didn't have their own heat scent, so they used Shelby's against us. They used her to try and get me aroused enough to go after her, by doing everything from sneaking up on her while we were alone in the forest and cutting or ripping her shirt off before we could stop them, which made both of us happy that she wore a bra, to stealing all of her clothes, which the only thing that we could see they would gain from that is that they hoped that she would walk around in only her underwear, but, after the first time this happened, we had met with Darkrai and she had agreed to keep some of Shelby's clothes in her room, without letting anyone know, so that had prevented any mishaps.

I yawned loudly as I exited the Hall, but my attention was caught when I heard a voice yell, "Hey, male!"

 _Speaking of those assholes._  I turned to my right to see Latias and a woman with short and spiky blue hair walking towards me. Yeah, none of us really understood why, but Latios had some weird thing with constantly wanting to be in human form.

"Yes?" I asked, sighing, as they reached me.

"Oh, nothing." Latios said, smirking. "We were just worried about you. Y'know, you've appeared to be extremely tired the past few days, so we wanted to make sure that you were okay."

_Bullshit._

"Well, as you can see," I replied, "I'm quite fine."

"Oh, did you hear that, Latios?" Latias said. "He's quite fine. I bet I know what that means."

_Son of a bitch. Fuck my choice of words._

"Ah," Latios said, "I assume that that fire whore finally sunk low enough to have you claim her?"

"No," I said, "nothing like that has occurred."

"Oh?" Latios inquired. "I find that hard to believe."

"Yes, and I find it hard to believe that I haven't ripped out your vocal chords and used them to jump rope yet." I growled out.

"Oh, getting feisty are we?" Latias said. "Well, I bet that I know a certain Flareon who benefits from that."

At this, I had to suppress the urge to knock both of them out.  _Hell, I could probably do it, should I actually attempt to._

"Listen," I said, sighing, "I'm really not in the mood for this today, so just get out whatever insults you have so I can be on my way."

"Aww, poo." Latias said, pouting. "You take all of the fun out this."

"I guess we'll just come back later then." Latios said, as they started inside. "Bye. Have fun being that whore's sex slave."

As they left, I heard them start laughing loudly. I sighed and closed my eyes as I stood there on the steps, massaging my temples in annoyance.

I was snapped out of my annoyed state by Shelby's voice saying, "Hey, you alright?"

I opened my eyes to see the Flareon standing there holding two plates of food, with a worried look on her face.

"Yeah." I said, sighing. "Sorry, it's just those two assholes."

"Well, c'mon, let's go eat." She said, handing me one of the plates.

I nodded and she led the way into the woods. We ended up walking for at least ten minutes, before we sat down in a clearing.

"Are you sure that you want to eat all the way out here?" I asked.

"Yeah." She said. "Why, do you not like this place?"

"No, it's not that." I reassured. "It's just that, we haven't been this deep since you started your heat, and, um-." I trailed off at the end.

"You're worried about all of the wild Pokemon out here, aren't you?" She said, seeming to read my mind.

"Yeah." I said, nervously.

"Well, don't worry." Shelby said. "I doubt that any males will be around, and besides, I'm pretty sure that once I explained that I wasn't interested, they would lay off."

I just shrugged, saying, "If you so."

"So," She started, as we began eating, "what's been up with you recently?"

"What are you talking about?" I asked, already knowing what her response would be.

"Well, recently you've just been extremely tired constantly," she said, "and I'm starting to worry about you."

"Don't worry," I reassured her, "I'm alright. I've just not been sleeping very well recently."

"Are you sure?" Shelby asked. "You don't seem to be concentrating as much, and I'm slightly worried about how that will affect the whole heat thing."

"Trust me, I'm fine." I said. "I don't know, I guess that training's starting to fuck with me some, or something."

"Well, maybe you could request a day off from Darkrai." She suggested. "I mean, if your sleep deprivation starts affecting your skill level, than I imagine that she would absolutely allow you a break to catch up on your sleep."

"No, I wouldn't want to ask that from her." I said. "It'd be way too unfair to take a day off just because I can't keep my shit together."

Shelby sighed, saying, "Whatever. I just worry about you."

"I know," I said, "and I thank you for it, but, I promise, I can handle myself."

"If you say so." She replied, shrugging. Changing the subject, she said, "So, what did the Eons want with you?"

"Oh, the usual." I said, offhandedly. "Mocking me, calling you a whore, calling me your sex slave. Y'know, nothing new."

"Arceus, they piss me off." Shelby said, sounding annoyed.

"Well, look at it this way," I said, "at least you don't have to put up with them going after you constantly. They just use you to go after me."

"Yeah, I guess." She said. "I always feel so bad about that."

"Don't." I said. "I don't care about it. My life was a shitty pit of loneliness, but you've kept my death from being the exact same thing. I'll deal with whatever they throw at me."

"Okay, just as long as you can take it." She replied.

We continued eating and talking, until I got a text from Darkrai saying that training was about to start. We hurriedly went back to the hall and ditched our dishes in the kitchen, before heading to the clearing in the woods that we use for training. When we got there, we saw Darkrai waiting, her signature scythe in her hands.

"Alright," she said, as we entered, "who wants to go first?"

"Do you want me to?" I asked Shelby. "I mean, you did go first yesterday."

"Sure." She replied, before going to the edge of the clearing and sitting down.

"Okay, go to your side." Darkrai said.

I went to one edge of the clearing, while Darkrai went to the other one. I spawned Strife, and held him with the blade going across both of my shoulders, behind my head. Darkrai took her own battle stance, holding her scythe, which she had name Black Rose, in a classic ninja movie katana stance, holding the handle with the blade pointing behind her, just reaching her head.

"Shelby, if you will." Darkrai said.

"Begin." Shelby said.

 _Okay, I have to remember; I cannot use my skills. No one can know._ Darkrai took a step back, before dashing towards me. As she reached me, she swung Black Rose forward at me, aimed at my head, but I quickly ducked under the blade, showing off the only thing that they knew that I was good at: dodging. As the blade passed over my head, I pushed out with the side of Strife, knocking her back. She caught herself and came to a sliding stop, halfway across the clearing. It was my turn to switch to the offensive, so I readied Strife and countered her attack by running over and stabbing at her, purposefully making it sloppy and slightly inaccurate. She easily parried the attack and hit me with the handle of her weapon, returning the knock back. She quickly swung her scythe out and hooked it behind my feet. She pulled back roughly on Black Rose, knocking my feet out from under me. My back hit the ground, and I looked up to see Darkrai place the blade of Black Rose at my throat, signaling my defeat. She sighed, removing the weapon, and I got to my feet, picking up Strife as I did.

"Damn it, Shane!" She yelled, extremely exasperated. "What the hell?"

"What?" I asked, defensively.

"It's been seven fucking months, yet I can still beat you as if it was the first day!" She responded. "What the hell are you doing?"

"I don't know." I said, shrugging. "I guess I just haven't been getting better."

"Well why the hell not?" She yelled back. "I've been working my ass off teaching you, yet you still fucking suck!"

Starting to get angry myself, I replied with, "Well, I don't fucking know why, but I just haven't been getting better!"

"Well you should have been!" She yelled. "Are you just not concentrating? Are you just too fucking lazy to do anything now that you don't have to live on the streets?"

"That's not it!" I yelled back, insulted.

"Well then, what is it?" She questioned. "Do you just not care about the thousands of innocents that die every day?" I stood there, too shocked by the statement to reply, so she continued, "Hell, maybe the others are right. Maybe a male doesn't deserve to be a Champion."

I froze, my anger sharply increasing.  _What?_ I clenched my fists, my right one closing tightly around the handle of Strife, and I had to resist the urge to lash out at her.

"Darkrai," Shelby said, walking over to her and grabbing her arm, "calm down. You don't know what you're saying."

"No, I know exactly what I'm saying." Darkrai replied, knocking Shelby's arm off. "You don't fucking deserve this. I saved you and gave you a chance to do some good, seeing as you wasted your life, but all you've done is throw away everything that I've done for you. Maybe I should have just let you die."

I had had enough of this. I turned on my heel and started out of the clearing.

Shelby dashed in front of me, stopping me with her arms on my chest, and said, "Shane, please stop."

I just glared down at her and pushed her aside, before disappearing through the trees. I made Strife disappear and started walking in a random direction, too pissed to care about where I was going.  _I don't care? I've spent the past month staying up until five in the morning or later, sometimes not even sleeping at all, just to train with ESTR for the sole purpose of helping the world. How the hell can that bitch say that I don't care?_ I quickly remembered that no one knew about our training, but it did nothing to calm me. I turned and started back for the Hall, still seething.

* * *

I flipped over in my bed, reaching for my phone. I picked it up and saw that it was close to midnight.  _I should probably get ready._ I got up from my bed and reached under it, pulling out small wooden chest with two metal latches on the front. I opened it to reveal a completely black hooded jacket.

"Well, let's go." I said, taking it from the box.

I took black sleeve off of my arm, along with the shoulder pad, and set them on my bed, before beginning to put the jacket on, reflecting the events of the day. After I had gotten back to the Hall I had gone straight to my room, too pissed to do anything else. I locked myself in my room and just laid on my bed, dead to the rest of the Hall. Shelby had come by twice, once when they got back from training and another time at dinner, offering me food. I just kept silent, ignoring her and the pained tone in her voice. I didn't like making her feel like that, and I hated myself for ignoring her, I just felt too pissed to actually talk to anyone after what Darkrai said to me. I still couldn't believe how she treated me, but it wasn't even what she said to me that angered me. What she said just cut me deeply, and I could barely suppress the urge to start tearing up when I got into my room earlier. It emotionally and almost physically hurt me to know that Darkrai, my mentor and the one that had had faith in me since before day one, had turned on me, siding with the others. I hated myself for it, and I wanted to just spill everything to her and tell her about all of the training, about all of my hidden progress, but I couldn't. I didn't want anyone to know about what I've done recently, and tonight would only increase that desire.  _That is, if I can actually go through with it._

"Arceus, I hope that I can go through with it." I said aloud, sighing.

I zipped the jacket up and threw the hood onto my head, hiding my ears, before tucking my tail down into the back of my pants. I reached into the box and pulled out the last piece of my disguise. My mask. The mask was a jet black, which, post getting it and showing it to ESTR, had been confirmed to be made out of the same material as Strife, obsidian. On the mask was a large red X, which stretched from the corners and went across my nose. The only holes in the material were two holes just large enough for me to use for my eyes, but not enough to allow any of my face to show. I put the mask on, covering my face and completing my uniform.

"Well, here I go." I said, my voice muffled by the mask, which caused it to sound uncharacteristically deeper.

I left my room, shutting the door behind me quietly. I started for the training room. I entered and found it silent, as usual.

"Hey, ESTR," I said, "let's go."

She appeared next to me, a worried look on her face.

"Are you sure, Shane?" She asked.

"Yes," I replied, "why wouldn't I be?"

"Well," she began, hesitantly, "I sorta heard about what happened between you and Darkrai."

"Your point?" I asked.

"Well, I was just worried whether or not you're alright." She said.

"Trust me," I replied, "I'm perfectly fine. Now, can we go?"

Without waiting for an answer, I started for the balcony to my right, where ESTR's mainframe was located.

"Have you tried patching things up yet?" ESTR asked, following me.

"No, not really." I said, climbing the ladder.

"You really should." She advised. "Darkrai cares for you, and I'm sure she wants to continue training with you."

I scoffed, replying, "She cares for me? She fucking insulted me and said that I don't deserve to be a Champion. I don't know what your definition of care is, but that doesn't match mine."

"Shane, she was just angry with you." She said. "She just felt like you don't try as hard as you should."

"Whatever." I said I response.

I went over to the wall and found the right location. I found the small seam in the wall and slid my fingers under it slightly, opening the hidden panel. In it was a few dials and switches, which were used to do things such as shut ESTR, open up the hidden door to the complete mainframe, along with multiple other things, and a small black chord, with a few USB looking ends on it. I took my phone from my pocket and plugged the proper one into it. A window popped up on my phone and, after entering the correct password, it started downloading. After a minute or so, the download was complete, and a much smaller version of ESTR popped up, hovering just above my phone's screen.

"Alright, take up your disguise, E." I said, using her code name.

"Very well." ESTR said, before disappearing.

We had decided to give a code name so that I could speak to her in the field, while she would just refer to me indirectly, without using a name. After a few seconds, a small hologram of a boy popped up on my phone, red, rather than blue.

"Alright, let's go." She nodded, and I closed up the mainframe.

I clipped my phone to my belt and descended the ladder and left the room, knowing where to go. Shortly after I came up with this plan, I started looking around the Hall to try and find something to help me, which I quickly did. Contrary to my prior belief, there was no special power that had to be used by a legend to teleport you somewhere, they merely used a portal in a room in the Hall. Darkrai had neglected to show me the room when I first got here, with reasoning that remained unknown to me. I entered the room, and saw the large, circular portal at the opposite wall. I went over to the multiple cabinets on the wall and opened it, revealing small disks. I grabbed one, careful not to press down on the button, and put it in my back pocket, before going over to the small computer next to the portal. I started typing on the keyboard. ESTR and I had messed around with this multiple times, and I had discovered that, to teleport somewhere, all you had to do was put in the proper coordinates, or just the address for it. We had used this scope out where we were hitting prior to this night, memorizing everything about the place. I had also used it to obtain the items for my disguise. When I finished putting in the coordinates, a blue swirl appeared in the empty portal frame. I stepped in, bracing myself for the spinning sensation. After a few sickening seconds, I felt my feet hit the ground. I opened my eyes to see that I was in a forest, with the full moon shining down on my clearing.

"Fuck, I hope that I get used to that." I said, resisting the urge to throw up.

"You should," ESTR said, her voice slightly different, as she appeared on my shoulder, still a male, "at least, according to the others, you will."

I sat on the ground for a minute to let my stomach calm down. When it did, I got back up and began heading for the camp. We eventually came to a small rise in the land at the end of the trees, and I went up it, crouching down at the top. I looked out at the camp. The main building was large and made of gray stone, with no windows and only a front door. It looked to be at least four stories tall, and, I knew, full of abused and emaciated people.  _Alright, there's the prison._ As there were no other buildings, I assumed that all of the guard barracks were in it, as well. Surrounding the perimeter of the building, along with the large yard, was a tall wire fence, with electrified wires braided through the fence, and it was all topped with barbed wire. There was only one entrance, a large gate that was in the fence on my side, with a guard tower on each side, both manned by snipers. The yard was populated with patrols of soldiers, most seeming to be teams of two, and there were spotlights on the roof of the building, each one sweeping over the yard and outside of the fence, manned by a sniper as well. There were random stacks of sandbags and equipment that could serve as cover from gunfire, should things get out of hand.

"Alright, let's go." I whispered.

I slid down the other side of the hill, and, dodging spotlights, silently moved over to another cliff, this one much closer to the fence. I got to the top and faced the camp. I took a running start, before leaping into the air, launching myself over the fence and onto the ground on the other side.  _Alright, so far so good ._ I quickly moved over to the guard tower nearest to me, avoiding the lights. I climbed the stairs into the tower, and slowly slid open the door, trying to be silent. I saw the sniper standing there, focused on the ground outside of the fence.  _Okay, I can do this._ I snuck up behind the person, and stood up. I reached by hands around him, placing one hand over his mouth and the other on his forehead. I quickly gripped his head and sharply moved my arms, resulting in a satisfying cracking sound as his neck snapped. The body fell to the ground, making a quiet thud. I bent down to inspect his body. Deciding that I would need a weapon, I reached over to his sniper. Deciding that a rifle wouldn't be of too much help at this moment, I went to his waist. There, I found two completely black Desert Eagles.  _Guy seems to like my color. I think that I'll these._ I unhooked them from his holsters and put them in my pockets. I left the tower, vaulting over the stair's guard rail, and landing on the ground silently. I went over to the other tower and repeated my assassination, before leaving again. I started across the yard, avoiding the spotlights and patrols. I eventually reached the door, and saw it to be unlocked. I began reaching for the knob, but froze as I heard someone yell.  _Fuck._  I whipped around to see a patrol, a guy with blonde hair and a Gengar, behind me.

"Hey, you," the Gengar said, pointing his assault rifle at me, "freeze."

No sooner had the words left his mouth, than had I reacted on my instincts, whipping my Desert Eagles from my waist and aiming them at the soldiers. I pulled the triggers, and a loud bang sounded, as the bullets left the chambers, before colliding with the soldiers' chests, punching a large hole in their chest cavities. Their bodies dropped, and all of the spotlights focused on me. I was quickly surrounded by multiple other soldiers, their rifles aimed at me. Without thinking, I launched myself into a flip, spinning in a circle and letting bullets fly. When I landed, I was the last one standing, but an alarm quickly started sounding. I counted off how many bullets I had fired and came to the conclusion that the guns were empty, so I put them back in my pockets. I dashed over to a soldier's body and picked up his weapon.  _Let's see. An M16A4 assault rifle, thirty round clip, 5.56x45 millimeter NATO rounds. Semi-automatic and burst action. Let's get fucking started._

"Thank you." I said, walking back over to the door.

As soon as I kicked the door open to find more soldiers in the small entry room, their guns pointing at me. I dashed back out and took cover in the wall, as gunfire rang out in the room. When the noise stopped, I stepped out and began firing, placing precise bursts in the soldier's chests. As the final body dropped, I stepped over them, enter the narrow walkway that went to the back wall of the building. On all sides of me were prison cells filled with people, most of them at the bars watching me, the others seeming to be too sick, too tired, or, as I noticed in some, too dead to move. Some cells had only one or two people in it, which seemed to fit the small rooms quite well, while some had anywhere between five and ten people packed in them. The people were of all ages, the youngest appeared to be about five, while the oldest looked to be in her seventies. I continued down the hall, until I came to a set of stairs. I ascended these, to find a similar room, which I went down, to find yet another set of stairs. I went up these to find myself in another cell room.  _Holy shit, do they really have this many people here?_ When I reached the other end of the hall, I, once again, saw a set of stairs. I ascended them to find myself in what appeared to be a set of guard barracks, filled with soldiers, some pointing weapons at me, while others had taken cover behind their beds or chests.

I laughed lightly, and said, "Let's go."

I opened fire on a line of soldiers, and they all dropped. I continued through the room, ending life after life. At the back, I saw a large switch labeled "Cell Release". I went to pull it, but was stopped as a bowie knife stabbed into the wall, inches from my hand. I turned to see a Bisharp standing there, more knives in his hands.

"That was rude." I said.

"Yeah," the Bisharp replied, "well let's see how rude it is when I cut you open."

He dashed at me, waving his knives at me. I delivered a punch to his stomach, stunning him, before knocking him back. He flew through the air, but caught himself, before landing on his feet. He charged at me again, but I sidestepped, and nailed him in the jaw with my fist. He flung himself at me once again, and I grabbed his knives, before ripping them from his hands, and flinging them across the room. I swung his fist at me, but I caught it. I gripped his arm and quickly snapped it, bringing him to his knees. As he fell, I gripped his head and snapped his neck. His body fell to the floor, and I stepped over it. I pulled the switch, and a loud buzzing filled the building. I left the room to see people quickly piling out of the room and down the stairs. I followed, until we reached the yard. The prisoners dashed over to the un-electrified gate and pushed it open, leaving. I looked over and saw a group consisting of an Espeon, a Delphox, a Lopunny, and a Mightyena running over to me.

"Are you the man who saved us?" The Espeon asked, her voice layered with worry.

"Yes." I replied. "Is there something wrong?"

"Yes." The Mightyena responded. "It's our daughters."

"What of them?" I asked.

"The captain still has them." The Espeon said. "He's recently started taking teenage girls back to his own quarters, an underground bunker behind the prison, and they haven't been returning."

"Don't worry," I said, reassuring her, "I'll go and get them."

The Espeon nodded, and I dashed around the building.  _Why am I almost positive that I know what I'm going to find?_ I found a small hatch at the back of the building, and I opened it, revealing a ladder, leading down. I climbed down it and found myself in a bedroom. Had I had no prior knowledge as to what this place was, I would have assumed it to be a normal master bedroom, as it had a large bed, a dresser, a closet, and a door, which I assumed led to a bathroom. It looked almost normal. Almost. Chained to the wall to my right were an Eevee, a Buneary, a Braixen, and a Poochyena. I quickly ran over to them. I saw, in horror, that all of them were completely nude, with red and white stains in their fur, and all of them but the Eevee had their eyes closed.  _The red is obviously blood, and I would prefer not to confirm my suspicions about what the white is._ I knelt down in front of the Eevee and reached for her chains, but she struck out at me with a kick, her foot connecting with my stomach. I looked at her as I regained my breath and saw fear plastered to her face and filling her eyes.

"Hey, calm down." I whispered, moving back to her. "I'm here to free you. I've already freed the others, and your mothers are waiting up top."

"Really?" She asked me, her voice sounding dry. "You're here to help?"

I nodded, and she relaxed. I reached for her chains and, seeing that I would need a key to quietly unlock them, I got up and dashed over to the dresser. I searched through it, hunting for the key. I eventually found it, so I ran back over to the Eevee.

"So," I asked, kneeling back down and beginning to free her, "where's is this captain?"

"I imagine in the bathroom." She replied. "He got drunk, used the others for his own purposes, and then muttered something about needing to piss, and then he stumbled into the bathroom. Granted, that was about two hours ago, so he probably passed out like always."

I finished getting her shackles of, and she leapt up, wrapping her arms around me.

"Thank you, so much." She said, burying me in a hug.

"It's nothing." I said, returning the embrace. Releasing her, I handed her the key and said, "Here, you start freeing the others and waking them up, and I'll go deal with our drunken friend."

She accepted the key and nodded, before going over to the Buneary. I went over to the closed door and, deciding to be done with subtlety, I kicked it open, revealing a Typhlosion, holding a pistol.

"Stay back, damn you!" He demanded. "Get out now, and no one needs to die."

I just laughed, and said, "I've already killed all of your men, and you'll surely follow."

He seemed to go in minor shock, before saying, "You've killed them all?" I nodded, and he flung himself at me, shouting, "You bastard!"

I easily flung him across the room, near the ladder. As he still had the gun, he raised it and aimed, but not at me. I saw that he had the barrel of the weapon aimed at the Eevee, who had already freed the Buneary and Poochyena , who were also awake, and was now moving on to the Braixen. Without thinking, I tackled the Eevee down, just as the gun went off. I felt a sudden pain in my left arm, and looked down to see a hole in my jacket at my upper arm, with blood slowly starting to come out of it.  _Shit!_ Deciding to end the fight quickly, I dashed over to the Typhlosion, ignoring the pain in my arm, and coated my right hand in an Iron Claw, before sinking it into his throat. Crimson blood started to pour from his neck and onto my hand, as I removed the claw and his body fell to the floor. I got rid of the claw and turned to see the Buneary and Poochyena staring at me in fear, while the Eevee had gotten back up and was currently trying to wake up the Braixen. I dashed over to the unconscious fire type, and knelt down next to her.

"Is she alright?" I asked the Eevee.

"I don't know," she responded, "she won't wake up."

Fearing the worst, I checked her pulse, to find that, thankfully, she was alive, just unconscious.

"She's alive, just knocked out." I said. "Now, c'mon, we need to leave."

I started to left the Braixen up into my arms, but I was stopped by the Eevee putting her hand on my shoulder and saying, "Can you carry her? I mean, you did just get shot."

"Don't worry," I replied, "I can get her. Granted, I may need help getting her up the ladder, but I should be able to get her the rest of the way."

The Eevee nodded, and she followed the other two up the ladder. I held the Braixen I my arms and started for the ladder, ignoring the pain and stress in my left arm. I reached the ladder and, with some help from the Eevee, got the Braixen up, followed by me. When I was at the top, I picked up the Braixen and the Eevee and I started around the building, the other two having already gone to their mothers. When we turned the corner, I saw the Poochyena and Buneary standing with their respective parents, while the Delphox and Espeon were pacing worriedly. As soon as they caught sight of me, the two mothers rushed over to me, the Espeon scooping her daughter into her arms, not caring about her soiled fur, and the Delphox paused in front of me.

"Is she okay?" She asked me, stroking her daughter's head.

"Yes," I replied, "she is merely unconscious."

"Here, I can carry her." The Delphox said, reaching under the Braixen.

I moved my arms away, and the Brixen dropped into her mother's arms, who promptly moved back to the other mothers. At this point, the Espeon and Eevee approached me, smiles on their faces.

"Listen," the Espeon said, "I want to thank you, on behalf of the others and myself. Their just too wrapped up in being back with their daughters to care about anything else, I imagine."

"It's quite alright." I said, nodding slightly. "I understand. I would be this was as well, should I be reunited with a missing family member."

At this point, the Espeon wrapped her arms around me, but pulled away as I winced in pain when she put pressure on my gunshot wound.

"Arceus, you're hurt." She exclaimed, inspecting it. "Please, allow me to help."

"Don't worry about it," I said, "I can fix it myself."

"Are you sure?" She asked. "I mean, I'm a nurse, so I imagine that I could help."

"Trust me," I reassured, "I can take care of it myself."

"Alright." She said. "Anyway, I can't thank you enough, but we truly should be leaving. We really need to find somewhere to hide out, as I can't imagine that our house would be safe anymore."

"I understand." I said, nodding. "Goodbye."

They both waved at me, as everyone left, leaving me standing alone. As soon as they left the gate, I let out a gasp of pain that I had been holding in.

"Are you okay?" ESTR asked me, appearing on my shoulder.

"Yes, I'm fine." I said. "I'll just need to fix it up when we get home."

She nodded and disappeared, and I started for the gate. I exited the camp and went back into the woods, before pulling the small disk from my back pocket. I pressed the button on it, and it expanded. I dropped it on the floor, and it started glowing blue, similar to the portal. I stepped on the disk and felt myself spinning, before my feet touched the ground. I was back in the portal room in the Hall. I picked the return pad up from the floor and went over to the console at the portal. I cleared the coordinates from the screen, and the portal grew blank and silent again. I put the disk back in the cabinet, as it had reverted back to its original size. I started for the infirmary, as I could feel myself getting dizzy from blood loss. As soon as I got there, I found a pair of tweezers, a needle, some thread, and some antibiotics. I used my minute amount of medical skills, along with common sense, and pulled the bullet from my wound, before cleaning it up and putting antibiotic on it, and stitching it back up. When I was done, I felt like I was going to throw up from the pain. I flopped back onto the bed that I was on, letting out a sigh.

"Well, that was successful." I said, removing my mask.

"To an extent, yes." ESTR said, appearing next to me, now in her normal form.

"Fun fact: bullets hurt like hell." I said, laughing slightly.

"I imagine." ESTR replied. "So, what are you going to do with those guns?"

"Shit." I said, facepalming, "I forgot that I had those. I don't know, I guess all I can do without raising suspicion would be to keep them hidden with my gear."

ESTR seemed to stand there, thinking, before saying, "Maybe you could find some way to use Heatran's forge to make it to where they have infinite ammo. I mean, she does use that to make the Champion weapons."

"Do you know how to work it?" I asked.

"To an extent." She replied. "But, I imagine that I could find some way to find out."

"Alright then," I said, "you find out how, and we'll do it."

"I will on one condition." She said. "I want you to patch things up with Darkrai."

I sighed, saying, "ESTR, I can't do that, at least not yet. I'm still angry over how much she insulted me."

"Fine then," she said, "at least stop being so rude to Shelby. You know that she cares for you, but you just continuously blew her off today."

"Alright," I agreed, "I'll do that."

"Okay then." ESTR said. "Now, I advise that you get me back to the training room. After all, it is almost sunrise."

"Seriously?" I asked. She nodded, and I sighed, before getting up and saying, "Alright, let me clean up in here and we can go."

I cleaned the mess that I had made, and found some painkillers while I was at it. I took some, which seemed to help my arm, and decided to pocket the bottle, just in case, and started for the training room.

"So," ESTR said, as we were walking, "how are you going to hide your wound?"

"I guess I can always use my sleeve." I said. "I mean, it does cover my whole arm."

We reached the training room, and I transferred ESTR back to her mainframe.

"Hey, Shane?" She said, as I started for the door.

"Yeah?" I responded.

"You were really heroic today." She replied. "You truly proved that the others are wrong."

"Thanks." I replied, leaving the room.

When I got back to my room, I put my jacket and mask in the wooden crate, followed by the two guns. I took a quick shower, careful not to upset my stitches, and put the crate back under my bed. I looked at my phone and saw that it was almost seven by now. I was about to lay down to try and get some sleep, when I remembered my promise to ESTR. I got dressed and put on the sleeve and shoulder pad, careful not to rub against the wound, and left my room, heading for Shelby's room. I knocked on it, and she came to the door immediately.

"Hey."I awkwardly said, as she opened the door.

"Hey." She said. "Would you like to come in?"

"Thanks." I replied, as she moved aside, allowing me to enter the room. "Listen," I started, as she closed the door, "I'm sorry for how I treated you yesterday. I was just angry with Darkrai, and I didn't want to risk me lashing out at you."

"It's alright." She replied. "I know that you probably weren't in the best state of mind after that."

"Thanks." I said, letting out a sigh of relief. "I was actually scared that you wouldn't accept my apology, or that you would be angry with me."

"Trust me," she said, "nothing would make me be angry with you."

She wrapped me in a hug, and I winced as she put pressure on my stitches.

"What's wrong?" She asked, pulling away.

"Nothing," I replied, "I think I just pulled something yesterday in training."

"Oh, I'm sorry." She said. "But, that reminds me. You really need to try and patch things up with Darkrai."

I sighed, and said, "Shelby, you know that I can't do that, at least not yet."

"How did I know that you would say that?" She replied, with a sigh of her own. "Anyway, do you want to go and get some breakfast?"

"Sure." I replied, and we left the room.

* * *

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so this was fun. Fight scenes, gun fights, and, of course, drama. But, I hope this was a good chapter, and I'll see you guys later.


	5. I Can't Believe That I Said That

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so I have another update, with some more fight scenes. Yay!

 

* * *

**I Can't Believe That I Said That**

I was standing on a ridge above a road. We were in the middle of the woods, waiting for a convoy to pass by.

"So," ESTR said, appearing on my shoulder, disguised, "why exactly are we here?"

"Because," I replied through my mask, "on the run I did yesterday, while you were under maintenance, I found some intel that an enemy convoy will be passing through. So, we're going to raid it."

"Do you even know what is on it?" She asked me. "Or, for that matter, what we'll do with whatever it is."

"Not at all." I said, as I heard vehicles approaching. "Now, let's go."

I stood up and pulled out my Desert Eagles. They were the same one that I had gotten a week earlier, on my first time out. Using ESTR's help, I had been able to use Heatran's forge to make them to make them perform like a Champion weapon, to where I could have them teleport to me, along with having infinite ammo, which proved to be extremely helpful. I watched as a pair of headlights came around the bend in the road, followed by the hummer they belong to. I saw what I had come to recognize as the Organization's symbol, Earth with a dark shadow looming over it, and horns sprouting from the shadow, painted on the side of it. Behind the hummer were two vans, the symbol on them as well, with the convoy ending with another hummer. I stepped out into the road, head down, blocking the vehicle's path. The convoy stopped, and four soldiers got out of the lead hummer.

"Hey, get the hell out of the road, fucker." A Jolteon said, coming up to me.

I lifted my head, revealing my mask, and he froze in place.

"Oh fuck, it's X." The Jolteon said, frightened, before dashing back to his teammates.

"It's nice to know that my infamy precedes me." I said, as he returned to his allies.

As soon as he reached them, I raised my guns and fired off four shots, each one blasting into the soldiers. As the gunshots ended, I heard four more doors close, before the occupants of the other hummer rushed in front of the convoy. Before they had a chance to react, I ended their lives as well. As their bodies dropped, I walked past the hummer and over to the van. I went to the driver side door and looked in the window, to see a frightened Chimchar looking out at me. I tapped on the glass and motioned for him to get out. He complied, as did his passenger, and they stepped over to me.

"Get in the hummer." I said, pointing at the vehicle.

They complied, and I went to the next van. I knocked on the window, and the driver and passenger got out.

"Hummer. Now." I said.

They went, and I followed them. As they got in the back, I went to the driver window, where the Chimchar was sitting.

"Drive away from here, now." I said. "I won't come after you, just leave and tell no one."

He nodded, and took off. As they drove off, I turned back to the vans and went to them.

"So, why did we do this?" ESTR asked me.

"It hurts them, whatever they need this shit for." I said. "Therefore, no matter what is in these vans, I have, and they don't, which is a good thing."

"Alright then." She replied.

I opened up the first van and saw that it was filled with firearms and ammunition. I dug through it, and found a few grenades.  _This will help._ I took a grenade from it, and put it in my pocket. I went back to the other van and saw that it was filled with wooden crates. I managed to get one out, and I sat it on the ground carefully. I coated my hand in an Iron Claw and pried it open. The crate was full of small glass syringe. I took one out and saw a label on it, reading "Pokerus Cure, Strain C. Comes in full cure dosage."  _Wait a minute, strain C? This will come in handy._ I put the crate's top back on and knocked the nails back down.

"What are you doing with that?" ESTR asked me.

"I know someone that could use this." I replied. "And, if I remember correctly, he lives fairly close by."

I picked up the crate and started for the large, looming mass of buildings that was Black Mesa. When I had reached a safe distance, I sat the crate down and took the grenade from my pocket and pulled the pin, before throwing back at the first van. I picked the crate back up and continued walking, as an explosion sounded behind me, causing me to be coated in a bright light and some minor heat. I eventually reached the farmland outside of the city. I found the right one, using the names on mailboxes, and I went to the front door. Deciding that knocking on the door at one in the morning wouldn't be too smart, I went around to the side of the house. I used a windowsill to climb up to the second story, before quietly opening the window. I leapt back down and, after struggling slightly, got the crate into the second story, as well. I picked up the crate and started through the hallway. I opened the first door I came to and saw two morphs asleep in a bed, a Gardevoir and a Gallade. I closed the door and went to the next one. I opened it and saw who I was looking for. I stepped into the room and went over to the bed, where a sickly looking Gallade was asleep. He was shaking in his sleep, his face paler than usual. I sat the crate on the ground and opened it up. I found a paper with instructions on how to properly administer the cure, so I followed the directions. I took out a small syringe and took out the small box of needles that were in it. I put the needle in the end of the syringe and tapped the syringe, getting all of the air bubbles out of the liquid. I brought his arm out from under his blanket, and brought the needle to his forearm. I put a minor amount of pressure on the needle, just enough to break the skin. I pushed down on the plunger, releasing the expensive and life saving cure into Ben's bloodstream. I closed the crate and sat it on a desk in the corner, before putting the empty syringe on the box. I looked on the desk to see a pad of paper and a pen. I picked them up and wrote a two word message on the paper: "You're welcome." I sat them down on the crate and left the room, shutting the door behind me. I went back down the hall and left through the window, closing it as I went. I pulled the return pad from my pocket and pushed the button on it, causing it to grow. I stepped onto it and was teleported to the Hall again.

"So," ESTR started, as my feet touched the marble floor, "who was that Gallade?"

"A friend of mine." I said. "He's been sick for a while, so I wanted to help him."

"What did you give them?" She asked me.

"That was the cure to his disease." I said, clearing the portal. "That crate held more than enough to bring him back to full health."

"That's nice of you." She said, as we started down the hall.

"I guess." I said, taking my mask off. "Really, it was just the right thing to do."

We reached the training room and I returned ESTR to her mainframe, before leaving the room. When I reached my own room, I immediately jumped into the shower. As I bathed, I began thinking about all that had transpired over the past week. Ever since my first night, I had been getting better, to the point where I was able to liberate a camp and take out two military outposts just last night. My quick work against the Organization over the week has earned me a fair amount of fame, causing me to be dubbed a hero. Which led to my nickname. X. They have been playing stories about what I've been doing over the news, along with showing security camera footage whenever possible. ESTR had suggested that we start taking out the cameras, but I preferred to keep them up. It seemed to give people hope whenever they saw me on the news, and they adored watching me take out soldiers through the footage. All of the news coverage has led to the people of the world giving me the nickname X, which is obviously traced back to my mask. I wasn't just popular among the normal world though. Almost every day since I started, I've heard others around the Hall talking about me, almost always in awe or amazement. Of course, they didn't know it was me, but it still felt nice getting recognition, to an extent. I felt s sudden dull pain as my hand put pressure on my stitches.

"Fuck." I gasped out, wincing.

The stitches still hurt whenever I put pressure on them, and going out every night wasn't helping the wound heal. ESTR continuously expressed her concern for me the first few nights, but after I just ignored them a few times, she just dropped the topic. But, that allowed her to continue pressing on with her other topic. Me and Darkrai. Both she and Shelby kept trying to get me to patch things up with her, but I still didn't feel like it was time. I wasn't necessarily still mad at her, but I still couldn't get what she said out of my mind. I fully plan to patch things up with her at some point, but I was also worried that she may still be pissed. I didn't expect her to apologize to me for what she said, after living with her for so long I knew that she's too stubborn to do that. I just wanted to make sure that she wouldn't go off on me again. Shelby said that she doesn't seem to miss me, which worries me, but she's persistent about it just being an act, that she really does want me back.

"That may be so, but I still want to wait." I said, to myself.

I turned the water off and got out of the shower. I toweled off and got dressed, before putting everything back into the crate. I replace the crate and stood up, before reaching under my mattress. I pulled out the bottle of painkillers and downed some, easing the pain in my arm. No one knew that I had these, and they never could. It was against the rules to take any sort of drug from the infirmary, and if anyone found out, they'd want to know why I needed them in the first place, and that would prove to be an awkward conversation.

"Awkward is an understatement." I said, once again to myself.

 _Why do I keep talking to myself? Fuck it, maybe I'm going crazy._ I laid down on my bed, and was asleep within a few minutes.

* * *

I woke up to knocking on my door. Knowing who it was, I made sure to put a shirt on before opening it.

"Hey." I greeted Shelby.

"Hey." She said. "Ready to go eat?"

"Yep, lead the way." I said.

"So, you seem better this morning." She noticed, as we started down the hallway. "Have you been getting more sleep?"

"Yeah, I have actually." I said. "Not having training gives me more free time."

"I imagine." She replied, and I could tell that she was fighting the urge to bring up Darkrai. "So, what exactly have you been doing with all of your time now?"

I sighed, before saying, "Nothing, really. I mostly just wander around in the woods, bored as fuck."

"Then talk to Darkrai." Shelby insisted. "I promise you, she misses you. She may not show it, but I know that she does."

"No." I said. "I'm sorry, but I'm still not ready to talk to her."

She sighed, and said, "Fine, whatever."

Without noticing, we had both went to the cafeteria, but we found it to be surprisingly empty. The only others in there was Anna, Articuno, and Latios's Champion, an Altaria named Ally, all of whom were sitting at the same table.

Confused, we went over to Articuno and Shelby asked, "Articuno, where is everyone?"

"Off in the meeting room." She replied. "They decided to use the giant screens to watch the news."

"What's so special about the news?" I asked, already anticipating the answer.

"That X guy." She replied. "Apparently, last night he hit another facility and took out a convoy." She sighed, before saying, "I still don't understand what's so interesting about him. I mean, we do the exact same thing."

"Well," I said, offhandedly, "it may be the fact that he does it singlehandedly. That, and he does it faster."

This apparently struck a chord in Ally, because she shot up and got in my face, saying, "So what, are you saying that we aren't as good as him?"

"I'm saying nothing of the sort." I said, calmly. "I'm merely stating facts. The only help he has is E, and he does in fact work faster, as he has taken out multiple camps, along with a convoy and military outposts in a week, while we have only taken out one camp and one outpost."

"What do you mean 'we', male?" She retaliated. "If you'll remember, you haven't even made any progress in training."

"Your point?" I asked. "Now, I would prefer it if you would get out of my face."

She just scoffed at me, before pushing past us and leaving the room.

"Fuck, they all annoy me." I said, sighing.

"Don't let them get to you." Anna spoke up. "Those dumb cunts are too narrow minded to actually bother believing that you aren't trash." We all looked at her, surprised by what she said, and she responded, "What? It's true."

"Well, yes," Shelby said, "but I never would have thought that you would use that kind of language."

"Why wouldn't I?" Anna asked, shrugging.

"Well," I replied, "you're normally so polite and, for lack of a better term, clean mouthed."

"Well, that's only when I'm disciplining the others," she said, "which seems to be every day since you came here. I mean, I'm still human, just like you guys. Just because I'm Arceus's Champion doesn't mean that I'm any better or different."

"The others seem to believe that you think that." I pointed out.

"Yes, well, if you'll recall, I just said that they are extremely narrow minded." She replied. "That, and I normally act that way around them, just to piss them off."

Shelby chuckled, before saying, "So, I take it that you don't like them either?"

"Of course not." Anna said. "Hell, I barely know you two, and I already like you guys better than any of the other Champions, and a majority of the Legends."

"Um, thanks, I guess." I said, awkwardly.

"No problem." She said, rising. "Now, I think that I'm going to go join them with watching the news. Would you guys like to come?"

I looked at Shelby and she shrugged, saying, "It doesn't matter to me. I mean, we can eat whenever, and I'm not too hungry to begin with."

I nodded, and said, "I agree."

Anna nodded, and we all left, saying goodbye to Articuno. We went to the meeting room, to find all of the Champions, along with a fair amount of the Legends, sitting on the floor, looking up at one of the video projections. We decided to just stick by the door, standing.

"Somewhere between last night, October fifteenth, and this morning, this convoy behind me was attacked by the infamous X." The Sylveon new reporter was saying on screen.

Behind her were the blown out remains of the gun van, along with the medicine van, somehow still in one piece, and the hummer behind it.

"The attack was reported by the four survivors, all of which were in the vans, rather than the hummers." She said.  _Aww, I was lied to._ She continued, "The mangled metal you see behind me was, in fact, a van hauling weapons and ammo, while the second van was hauling medicine. The convoy was en route to Black Mesa when it was attacked, with the masked assailant making off with a box containing medicine to treat Strain C, the most hostile strain, of the virus Pokerus. While we all know that this will set the Organization back some, I imagine that civilians everywhere are cheering for this 'people's hero'. Back to you in the newsroom."

As the screen switched from the street back to a newsroom, the room exploded in talk around us. From where we were sitting, I could pick up what Chelsea was talking about with Jenna and Maggie, as they were the closest to us.

"Arceus, he's so cool." Chelsea said, adoration laced in her voice.

The others looked at her, shocked, and Maggie said, "Chelsea, how can you say that?"

"What do you mean?" Chelsea responded. "He's so badass. You can't deny that he would be an awesome addition to the Champions."

"Yeah, I guess you are right." Jenna said, shrugging.

Chelsea sighed, before saying, "I'd let him cure my heat any day."

At this, I had to repress a gag, so it just came out as a mixture of a cough and a laugh. This caught the aforementioned girls' attention, as they turned around to face us.

"What are you laughing at, fucker?" Chelsea said.

"I wasn't laughing at anything." I replied.

"What the hell ever." She said, scoffing. "You're just jealous that you'll never be as good as him. You'll always be a useless fuck."

 _Oh, the irony is almost painful._ I was about to respond, but at that moment Arceus walked in, with all of the Legends that were absent behind her.

"Everyone, meeting. Now." She said, going over to her seat.

We all followed suit, going to our own seats. I sat down and Darkrai sat down next to me, neither of us acknowledging the other. I could tell that everyone was curious as to what the meeting was about, as there was chatter spread throughout the room, but that was silenced as Arceus cleared her throat.

"So," she began, "I imagine that you all have heard of this new 'X' person, correct?" There was no response, so she continued, "Well, we have been tracking him since his debut and, while his identity remains a mystery, it does appear that his intentions are good. But, this does not mean that we will be taking a break. On the contrary, we will be stepping up our game, sending out more missions, now that we have our ally in the shadows. I will be sending out missions every day now, and I want no Champion wasting any time. If you are not training with you Legend, than I want you either training on your own or out on a mission. Understood?" We all nodded, so she said, "Very well. Now, for today's missions." She turned to Mew and said, "Mew, I want you and Palkia to go out and take out an outpost. Take your Champions with you. I will message you the coordinates after the meeting." Mew nodded, so she faced Darkrai, and said, "Darkrai, you and Moltres are to attack a camp, tonight. Take your Champions." Darkrai nodded, albeit reluctantly, and Arceus said, "Alright, meeting adjourned."

As she said this, everyone got up. Already knowing that Darkrai would want to take Shelby instead of me, I left the room, before going outside. I went into the forest and climbed a tree, and just sat there.  _I imagine that Darkrai will want to get some extra training in, so it looks like I'll be alone for the day._ I sat there, listening to the silence of the forest, until I heard footsteps.

"So," I heard Anna's voice say, "how goes training up there?" I just stared down at her, and she said, "I'm just kidding. We already established that I'm not always serious. Now, why don't you come down here and we can talk about you and Darkrai?" I looked at her, shocked, and she said, "Yes, I know about your argument."

I dropped down, and said, "What is there to talk about? She doesn't want me as her Champion."

"C'mon, Shane," She said, "you and I both know that that isn't true."

"Why do all of you keep saying that?" I asked, annoyed. "She blatantly insulted me, saying that I don't deserve this."

"Shane, she kept you from dying," she said, once again taking me by surprise, "if that doesn't show that she cares for you, than I don't know what does."

"Currently, I wish that she hadn't saved me." I said, sighing. "I mean, it's not like I've even done anything important yet."

With that, I started walking away.

"C'mon, don't be so down on yourself." She said. "Just because you haven't done anything yet, doesn't mean you won't."

"If you say so." I said, sighing, as I continued walking away.

* * *

"Alright, there it is." I said through my mask.

It was close to midnight and ESTR and I were out on a mission. I had spent all day training in secret, and by the time it was nightfall, I was worn out, but I still decided to continue with my plan. We had found some intel about this camp when we found out about the convoy. But, this camp was special. It didn't hold normal civilians. No, it held a man named Arden. Arden is one of the former government leaders of the world, as he was the president of Black Mesa, which is the largest country in the world, both literally and economically. He has been hidden ever since they took control, and he has apparently been here the whole time. Due to the high priority target that was here, they had made the building look like a standard camp above ground, but, below ground, it was meant to be an expansive base, full of soldiers. Which, of course, meant that we were going after it. I was about to start my approach from the small hill I was on, when something caught my eye.  _No, it can't be._ Looking at the gate, I saw four figures sneaking up to it, who, upon closer inspection, I confirmed to be Darkrai's party.  _Damn it._

"Yo, E," I said, "you see what I'm seeing?"

ESTR appeared on my shoulder and said, "Indeed I do. Shall we turn back to the Hall and let them handle it?"

"No," I replied, "this is Shelby's first mission, as is it Darkrai's. We'll stay and provide any needed help, but we'll try and stay hidden."

With that, I slowly slipped into the shadows, following the others closely. I immediately saw a mistake that they were making. They were about to enter the front gate, with two snipers at their post right next to them.  _Damn it._ Thinking quickly, I made a decision on how to help. It was stupid as hell, but it was all I had. I coated my right hand in and Iron Claw and, preparing for the inevitable pain, brought it to the fence, and began snapping the thin metal. The pain was almost unbearable, feeling the electricity flow through my claw and into my hand. I fought through it though, until I had made a hole in the fence large enough for me to fit through. I entered the hole and quickly moved to the first sniper post. I went in and eliminated him, before searching for some form of silent weapon. I found the snipers bowie knife sitting near him, so I picked it up. I rose and, taking careful aim at the soldier opposite me, I sent the knife flying through the air, and it collided with the sniper's throat, causing him to drop.  _Fuck, that was close._ I looked down to see that they had reached the gate. I saw Moltres grab Chelsea, before silently lifting up off of the ground, and landing on the other side. Darkrai switched into her Pokemon form, before following suit with Shelby. As they landed, Darkrai switched back into her morph form, and they continued. As they moved past me, I saw that Darkrai had Black Rose drawn, while Shelby was holding her dual katanas, Alpha, made of obsidian, and Omega, made of steel. While they had these weapons out, I saw Moltres holding what appeared to be a short sword, while Chelsea was gripping the handle of a halberd tightly.  _Chelsea's weapon truly seems to be anti-stealth. Arceus, I hope that it doesn't get them caught._ The group continued across the yard, dodging spotlights and patrols, with me sticking behind closely. They eventually made it to the door, which appeared to be locked. Shelby quickly began picking the lock, while the others kept watch.  _I did not know that she could pick locks._ When she finished, the door swung open quietly, and they entered, leaving the door open behind them. I snuck in after them, and saw that we were in a dark empty room, which appeared to be multiple stories tall and completely empty.

"Alright, remember," Darkrai whispered in the silence, "we're here for Arden. We'll take out any one needed to get to him, but we must remain unseen."

They all nodded in response, before heading over to an elevator that was in the opposite wall. The all got in, before heading down. As they left, I quickly dashed over and held the doors open, before sliding through and dropping down onto the roof of the elevator. When we finally came to a stop, I could hear their footsteps leaving the elevator, and I quickly dropped down through the hatch in the roof, and followed them into the hallway. It appeared to be a fairly standard issue modern underground bunker, with the walls and floor made out of a perfectly white and clean tile, with three sliding doors, one in front of us, and one on each side. The room was lit with hospital-esqu lighting, so I kept back from them as they moved through the door to the right. I followed them into a long hallway, which they started down, with me following. They turned down another hall, and I moved up to peer around the corner. They were standing in what appeared to be a cafeteria, empty, other than themselves. Just as they entered, a door on the other side opened and four men walked in. As they walked in, they noticed the group of my allies, and everyone froze, eyes locking. After a few seconds of silence, my group dashed towards the soldiers, taking them out.

"That was too close."Moltres said, as the bodies dropped to the floor.

Just as she spoke, another man entered the room, unbeknownst to them. Seeing his friends on the ground, dead, he raised his gun and aimed it at Shelby.  _No!_  At this point, three things happened simultaneously. Darkrai noticed the man and yelled to warn Shelby, the soldier pulled the trigger, and I dashed from my hiding spot. I slid to Shelby and knocked her legs out from under her, catching her with my left arm while pulling one of my pistols from my pocket with the right one. As the bullet flew over our heads, I aimed the barrel of my gun at the soldier and pulled the trigger. The bullet flew from my gun, colliding with his head, right between his eyes. As the bullet punched a hole in his forehead, his body dropped. All eyes locked onto me as I looked down at the Flareon in my arms, to see shock and fear in her eyes.

"Are you okay?" I asked.

She froze for a second, before saying, "Um, yes. I'm alright. Thank you."

I nodded and helped her to her feet. When we were standing, I saw that everyone was looking at me.

"Umm, hello." Darkrai said, awkwardly. I nodded in response, and she said, "So, what exactly are you doing here?"

"Well," I responded, "I imagine the same thing you are here for. Arden."

"Very well then." Darkrai replied. "Perhaps we can work together."

"Indeed." I replied. "Do you have a plan?"

"Just for us to search though until we find him." She answered.

"That isn't advised." I said. "This place is too large for us to search efficiently if we stick together. It'd take hours."

"Well then," Darkrai said, "what do you suggest?"

"We split up." I replied. "You and Moltres are a team and I take your Champions."

"Absolutely not!" Moltres yelled, outraged. "I refuse to leave my Champion with a stranger, a male, no less."

I sighed, before saying, "Moltres, this is for the best. I will take care of Chelsea, but you need to team up with Darkrai. You two have more fighting skill than they do, so you'll be able to handle yourselves." She still seemed reluctant, so I said, "It's either that, or you stay down here for hours on end until you find him."

Moltres sighed, before saying, "Fine. We'll split up."

"Thank you." I said, nodding.

She went over to the door that the soldiers came from and started waiting for Darkrai. Darkrai sighed and started for the door, but I stopped her, my hand on her shoulder.

She turned to me, and I said, "Listen, I know you don't like her, but play nice, just this once."

"How did you know that?" She asked me.

I just shrugged and said, "A hunch. Now, will you play nice?"

"Don't worry," she said, "I won't kill her. I promise."

I nodded and released her, and she went over to Moltres. They left the room, leaving me with Chelsea and Shelby.

"Alright then," I said, "let's go."

We started back down the hall that we came from, Shelby walking silently on my left side, with Chelsea sticking to my right side, looking up at me constantly, a nervous grin on her face.

I looked down at her and saw this, so I said, "Yes?"

"Oh, nothing." She said. "I just wanted to tell you that I'm a big fan of your work."

"Thanks." I replied, simply.

"Seriously though," she continued, "I love all that you've done this week. I mean, you kick so much ass, and you've only been around for a week. That, and you're just so hot."

At this, she seemed to freeze, not realizing what she said, which provided some silence that I was thankful for. We continued walking, but at one point a scent permeated my mask. It smelled slightly familiar, but different.  _Arceus damn it!_  As soon as the scent was confirmed, I stopped and grabbed Chelsea by her neck, before pushing her up against a wall.

"What the hell are you doing?" Shelby asked, but I ignored her.

"Really?" I questioned Chelsea. "You didn't think to fucking cover it before your mission?"

"What are you talking about?" She choked out.

I released her throat and backed away as the scent began to overpower me, but I fought against it.

"Your fucking heat, you idiot!" I answered. "How the hell did you not think to get rid of a scent that damn strong."

"I'm sorry." She squeaked out, fear in her voice. Suddenly though, her eyes took on a look I've only ever seen in Shelby's, and she said, "Although, maybe you could help me cure it?"

I sighed in disgust, and said, "I'm not dealing with this. Listen, the others can't have gotten far, go back and find them."

"No." She pleaded. "Please no. I want to stay with you."

I was about to start yelling at her, when another thought popped into my mind.  _Fuck it, it'll probably be more effective._

"Listen," I began, reluctantly, "if you go back and go with them, then I'll sign something for you."

 _Arceus, I can't believe that I just said that._ But, as much as I hated saying it, Chelsea's face lit up at my words.

"Really?" She asked. "Do you mean it?" I nodded and she pulled me into a hug, saying, "Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you so much."

"Yeah, yeah," I said, "just try and find a marker while you're in here."

With that, she dashed back to the cafeteria, leaving Shelby and I alone.

I sighed, before saying, "Wholly shit, that was annoying."

"Yeah, she is, isn't she?" Shelby said. "So, are you actually going to sign something for her?"

"I don't see why not." I said. "I mean, I am a man of my word."

"That's always good." She said. "So, shall we continue?"

"Let's go." I replied.

As we started walking, Shelby attempted to make small talk, "So, any idea why she loves you so much?"

"Fuck if I know." I said, shrugging. "All I do is kill people. I really don't see what's so appealing about killer."

"Well, it may be the danger," she said, "or possibly the fact that you do all of this solo. I mean, you've done more work in a week than we have in a month."

"Well, I can't really blame you." I said, as we reached the door leading to the elevator. "I mean, you do follow Arceus's orders, so you can only do missions when told to."

"Technically, yes." She replied. "Granted, we could do missions in secret, but that could cause us to get into trouble."

"Really?" I asked.

"Yep," she said, "I mean, who knows what the punishment would be. It could just be having to do the Hall's laundry or dishes for a while, or it could be something much more serious."

"Like what?" I asked, slightly nervous now.

"Well, I guess that the offender could always be kicked out of the Champions." She said, offhandedly. She suddenly got up close to my ear and whispered, "But you wouldn't know anything about that, would you, Shane?"

 _Son of a fucking bitch!_  I quickly glanced around to make sure that there weren't any cameras around, before taking my mask off.

"Seriously?" I said, exasperated. "You fucking know? Is my disguise that bad? I mean, I've been doing this for a week and you already found out."

I sunk down to the floor, and Shelby joined me, saying, "Don't worry. Your disguise isn't that bad; trust me, had you not been the one to save me, I still wouldn't know. But, when I looked at you after you caught me, I recognized your eyes. I recognized the worry and care in them, the same worry and care that you always show for me."

At this, I wrapped my arm around her, saying, "Well, that's because I constantly worry and care about you. I mean, you're my best friend, how could I not care."

"Yeah, I know." She said, moving closer to me. "But, I do have a question. Why didn't you tell me?"

I sighed, saying, "I just wanted to keep all of it a secret. Y'know, I just didn't want anyone to know about what I do. So, I'd appreciate it if you could keep it a secret as well."

"Don't worry," she said, hugging me back, "I won't tell anyone. Just, please, don't keep important things like this a secret from me. I mean, we're best friends, and I want to know if there's anything that could hurt you."

"I know," I said, "and I'm sorry for keeping it a secret."

"It's alright." She said, before getting up. "Now then, I believe that we have a guy to find."

"Yep." I said, getting back up and putting my mask back on. "Let's go."

We started back down the hall, until we came to a staircase. We took it and found ourselves in another hall. We continued searching through the facility with very few issues, only having a few encounters with enemy soldiers, whom we quickly dispatched, until we finally found what we were looking for. The prison cells. We took a turn and found ourselves in a short hallway, small cells on both sides. Rather than having the stereotypical bars, they instead looked like solitary confinement cells, with a large metal door and a small rectangle at eye level that could be opened. When we turned the corner, we found two guards, but we took them out before they could notice us. We went to the door that they were standing in front of and I opened the small sliding window, to see a bone thin man, no older than his thirties, his red hair grown down past his stomach, lying on the floor, curled up in a ball.

"Arden, is that you?" I asked.

At this, the man raised his head and looked around, before his eyes fell on me and he said, "That depends. Who's asking?"

"Sir, I know that you don't know who I am," I said, "but I go by X, and I'm here, helping some of the Legends and their Champions break you out."

He stood up and said, "Oh trust me, I know who you are. Not a day has gone by that I haven't heard something about you. The word around the base is that you've been kicking a fair amount of gang ass as of late, correct?"

"That's right, Mr. President." I replied. "And that is why I'm here to break you out."

"Well then," he said, "I imagine that you'll need the keys. Thankfully for you, all of the underground base guards have a pair, so you should be able to get some off of the men that you recently killed."

I nodded and signaled for Shelby to search one of the bodies. After a few seconds, she returned to me with a small key ring, with one key on it. I put the key in the lock on the door and turned it. As I did this, the door swung open, and Arden stepped out, wearing nothing but a baggy pair of jeans, with holes filling them.

"Alright," I said, "Shelby, call the others and tell them that he's with us."

She nodded and pulled out her phone. As she contacted the others, we all started back the way we came, with me having to support Arden some, his arm thrown over my shoulder.

"So, who exactly are your friends that you called?" Arden asked.

"Moltres and her Champion," Shelby replied, "and Darkrai. They said that they will meet us back at the elevator."

He nodded and we continued down the hall until we reached another cafeteria, this one about as large as the one in the Hall.

"Can we take a break here?" Arden asked, as we entered the room. "I'm a little tired."

"Of course." I said, letting him sit down at one of the tables.

Almost as soon as I did this, I heard voices coming from the other door, followed by about ten guards walking in. As they entered and noticed us, we all just froze, staring at each other. I was the first to act, pulling Arden up from the chair and flipping the thick metal table over for cover, dragging Shelby down with us. As soon as I did this, the room exploded in gunfire, all ten soldiers firing, most of them missing the table. As they paused to reload, I popped up to see that they took my lead and flipped over tables as well.

"Well, this got interesting." Shelby said, as I dropped back down and they opened fire again.

"Yep." I replied, drawing my guns. "E, how about some fight music?"

She obliged, as  _Kill Everyone_ by Hollywood Undead started playing from my phone.

"Nice." I complimented.

I popped up again, Desert Eagles in hand, and launched off two rounds, each hitting a soldier in the chest. I dropped back down as more bullets whizzed past us. I heard a door open, and I peeked over to see more soldiers joining the fray.

"Shit." I said. Coming up with an idea, I said, "Shelby, would you prefer to keep in cover and shoot, or run out and melee kill?"

"I guess shoot." She replied. "Why?"

I handed her my guns and said, "Give me Alpha and Omega."

She complied, and I gripped the katanas in my hand.

"On three." I said. She nodded, and I yelled, "Three!"

As soon I said this, I leapt over the table and rushed through the oncoming bullets, somehow managing to dodge them all. I heard gunshots sound behind me, signaling that Shelby had started giving me covering fire. I continued running until I vaulted over one of the enemies tables, shoving the blade of Alpha into one of the soldier's eyes as I did. I landed and pulled Alpha from the soldier, just before slashing out with Omega, cutting a soldier clean in half.

_You got the motherfucking right to remain violent!_   
_Hollow points hiding in my clip_   
_I'll take 25 just to watch your life end_   
_I pray father please forgive me 'fore I sin_   
_Got these sticks of dynamite and dying to light them_   
_God don't fail me now_   
_Get thrown and you gon' get carried out_   
_To a hole where I know you won't be found_   
_Just face it it's almost over now_

_Don't even try to take this weapon from me_   
_I like you more and more the lesser you breathe_

Having cleared that 'nest', I dashed over to another one, where I was confronted by a Scyther, his blades at the ready. He lunged at me, but I parried him easily, before swinging out with Alpha. The blade connected with his left arm, just below the elbow, and I hacked the limb in half.

_I've come undone_   
_I think I'll kill everyone_   
_My, what have I done?_   
_Fuck it let's kill everyone  
 _  
I've come undone_  
 _I think I'll kill everyone_  
 _My, what have I done?_  
 _Fuck it let's kill everyone__

He froze and stared at the bloody stump in shock, before lunging at me again, rage filling his eyes. I dodged the attack and stabbed out with Alpha again, this time sinking the blade into his stomach. I used my boot to scrape his body off of the weapon, before flinging myself at another group of soldiers, who's neck quickly met the blades of Alpha and Omega, followed by their heads becoming acquainted with the floor. As more bullets came flying at me, a team of a Gallade and a Bisharp came flying at me, trying to stab me. I quickly did a back flip over the duo, landing behind them.

_Oh no here comes the riot_   
_Does everything have to resort to violence?_   
_If you think you can hide, go and try it_   
_Now let's let the fucking gun break the silence_   
_Close your eyelids_   
_Another shot and then here come the sirens_   
_I thought I told you to keep fucking quiet_   
_Somebody's dying, so come say goodbye kids_

_Don't even try to take this weapon from me_   
_I like you more and more the lesser you breathe_

They barely had time to register what happened, before I chopped them both in half horizontally. I heard a deep growl and looked up to see an Aggron, not a morph, but a full blown fucking Aggron, glaring down at me, looking extremely pissed off. It charged at me and, before I had time to react, I found myself pinned to a wall, its horns on either side of me. Quickly thinking, I used my Psychic power to bring the dropped swords over to me. I caught them and tried to stab into its head, to no avail.

_I've come undone_   
_I think I'll kill everyone_   
_My, what have I done?_   
_Fuck it let's kill everyone  
 _  
I've come undone_  
 _I think I'll kill everyone_  
 _My, what have I done?_  
 _Fuck it let's kill everyone__

Reevaluating my plan, I dug both of the blades into the Pokemon's eyes, causing it to let out a howl of pain, dropping me. It began running around wildly, blood pouring from its blinded eyes, Alpha and Omega still sticking out of them. I dashed over to him and leapt up onto his back, reaching for the weapons.

_I'm a take you all down_   
_Saying fuck the world now!_   
_I'm a take you all out_   
_I'm say fuck the world now!_

_I'm a take you all down_   
_Saying fuck the world now!_   
_I'm a take you all out_   
_I'm say fuck the world now!_

I gripped the handles in my hands and began twisting them around, until the Pokemon finally collapsed onto the ground, dead.

_Don't even try to take this weapon from me (Saying fuck the world now)_   
_I like you more and more the lesser you breathe (I'm saying fuck the world now)_

_I've come undone_   
_I think I'll kill everyone_   
_My, what have I done?_   
_Fuck it let's kill everyone  
 _  
I've come undone_  
 _I think I'll kill everyone_  
 _My, what have I done?_  
 _Fuck it let's kill everyone__

As the song ended, I picked myself up off of the floor and pulled the swords from the Aggron's eyes. I looked around to see sixteen dead bodies, not including the Aggron, five of them dead by the blades, two dead by my gun usage, and the rest done by Shelby. I stood there, panting, as the door opened again. I looked over to the door to see Darkrai, Moltres, and Chelsea step in, looks of shock on their faces. Looking around, I could see why. The room was in pieces, with bullet holes in the walls and tables, some of which were flipped over. There were bodies everywhere, and I was covered in blood, to the point where it was dripping from my clothes, as were Alpha and Omega. I looked back at our cover to see Shelby pop up, with Arden leaning on the table next to her.

"Holy shit!" Darkrai said, surprise laced in her voice. "X, did you do all of this?"

"Not entirely." I responded, still panting. "I'm responsible for the Aggron, two gun kills, and the blade kills. Shelby can take credit for the rest."

"Really?" Darkrai said, looking at Shelby, shocked. "You killed that many people on your first mission?"

"Um, yeah." She answered, nervously. "Is that bad?"

"Hell no, it's not bad." Darkrai said, rushing over and gripping Shelby in an embrace. "Especially with the skill that you used."

"Hey," I said, "I hate to break up the morbidly touching moment, but we've got a president to get out of here."

Darkrai looked at me, before looking at Arden, and said, "Right. Let's continue."

"Excuse me, miss," Arden said, "but I can't exactly walk well right now."

Darkrai nodded, before offering her shoulder to him. He accepted, throwing his arm over her shoulder, and they left the room, followed by Moltres.

Shelby came up to me, handing me my pistols, and said, "Here's your guns back."

I handed her Alpha and Omega back, before saying, "And you your swords."

We were about to leave, when I remembered my promise.

"Hey, Chelsea," I said, "did you ever find a marker?"

"Oh, yeah." She said, digging around in her pockets.

She pulled out a black marker and threw it at me. I caught it, and the others looked at me, curious as to what I was going to do. I bent down to the Aggron and gripped one of its horns in my hand. After pulling roughly and using a Shadow Ball, I finally snapped the horn in two, giving me a piece that was roughly five inches. I found a spot on the horn that wasn't covered in blood, and I used the marker to put a large, stylish X on it.

I threw it to Chelsea, saying, "Here."

She caught the horn and looked down at it in awe. Shelby and I walked past her, as she followed, still speechless.

We went outside, where Moltres, Darkrai, and Arden were waiting. I looked to the sky to see that the sun was just rising.

"So," I said, "where exactly is he being moved to?"

"A safe house." Darkrai replied. She turned to Shelby and Chelsea, saying, "Girls, you two go ahead and go home. Moltres and I will take it from here."

They both nodded, before taking a return pad from their pockets. The dropped them and stepped on them, leaving. When they were gone, Darkrai turned to me.

"Well, I suppose that I should say thank you." She said. "Honestly, we probably couldn't have done it without you, and if we had, we'd still be down there, trying to find him."

"Don't worry about it." I said. "I'm just glad that I could help."

"Well, thanks anyway." She said. "Goodbye."

I nodded and left the camp. When I was out of eyesight of the camp, I pulled my own return pad out. I pressed the button and stepped on it, returning to the Hall. As I arrived, I saw Shelby standing there, holding a back pack and a set of my Champion clothes.

"Here," she said, giving them to me, "I imagine that it'd be awkward, should someone wake up early and leave their room to find a blood covered X roaming the Hall."

"Thanks." I said, accepting the clothes.

She turned around, and I quickly changed clothes. When I was done, Shelby handed me the bag, allowing me to put my gear in it. I did so, and we left the room, with my boots, thankfully, blood free. We silently agreed to go into my room, and we sat on my bed, the bag at our feet.

"So," she started, "you're X."

"Yep." I replied, awkwardly.

"Must be exciting." She said.

"I guess." I replied. Sighing, I said, "Listen, I'm sorry for not telling you."

At this, Shelby wrapped me in a hug, saying, "You should be. You know that I care about you, and you didn't tell me about you doing something that could have gotten you killed."

"Hey, don't worry." I said, rubbing the back of her head. "I would never let myself die out in the field."

She looked at me, her eyes locked with mine, and said, "Will you promise me that?"

"Of course." I said, hugging her back.

I looked down at her, and our eyes locked. As we looked at each other, our faces slowly moved closer, until we were only a few centimeters away. As soon as we were close, we both pressed our lips together, and our eyes closed. We stayed this way, kissing, for multiple minutes, until we had to break apart for air. When we opened our eyes, I saw not blind lust in her eyes, like I normally do when we are close, but a deep, caring passion, mixed with an intense love.

"Wow." We both said, simultaneously.

* * *

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aww, what a nice ending. I loved this chapter. I mean, the fight scenes, the nice little ending. I liked it, and I hope you did, as well. Anyway, I'm thinking of just putting up another chapter for all of my other stories soon, and then taking a break from writing, as I have been on a binge lately. Goodbye, until next time.


	6. I Depend On You Too

**I Depend on You Too**

I stepped out of the portal, sighing deeply.  _Arceus, tonight sucked._ I turned off the portal, my right hand in an immense amount of pain. I gritted my teeth against the pain that shot through me every time that my little finger tapped the keyboard. I winced, gasping through my teeth, as my hand accidently struck the keyboard roughly. As the portal deactivated, ESTR appeared on my shoulder.

"Are you okay?" she asked me, her voice filled with concern.

"Yeah, I'm fine." I reassured her. "It's just my hand. I must have injured it in that fight."

"Maybe you should have Celebi look at it?" ESTR suggested.

"No, I'll be fine." I said, as I replaced the return pad. As I left the room, I said, "And, besides, the gunshot hurt more than this, but I still did nothing. I'll just steal some more painkillers and fight through it."

"Well, how did the bullet wound work out for you?" She pointed out.

I sighed, knowing that she was right. The wound still hadn't healed, and I had torn the stitches out multiple times. It had happened at least three times in the past two weeks alone. Granted, those two weeks have been spent with Shelby knowing my secret, and she was much more skilled in the medical field then me, so she's been helping me with the wound. I sighed, as I entered the training room.  _Fuck, I'm so fucking lucky to be dating her. She's so fucking amazing._  I climbed up the ladder to the seats, and returned ESTR.

"Goodnight, Shane." She said, as I retreated to the door.

"Yeah, night." I said, as I left.

As I went down the hall, I took off my mask.  _Damn, Shelby's probably been worrying about me. I told her that I would be home hours ago._ I sighed.  _I hope she isn't mad._ We had been dating ever since we kissed, although we have been keeping it a secret. Apparently, hundreds of years ago, back when the first Champions were recruited, there were males, as well as females, as Champions. Back then, there was a rule, a rule against any romantic relationships between Champions. So, to be safe, we decided to keep our relationship a secret, as we weren't sure if that rule would still exist. So, the only times that we were able to act like we were dating was in privacy. Yeah, it sucked.

"Granted, it would most likely just provoke more insults, so I don't have too many issues with it." I quietly commented. "Although, I would happily deal with any insults thrown at us just to be able to hug her in public."

I came to my room and entered, closing the door behind me. The room was dark, but I could still see the shape of the Flareon that I love, curled up on my bed. I flipped the lights on and went over to my bed and sat down, trying not to wake her up. I failed, though, indicated by an orange and cream colored head popping up, blinking sleepily.

Shelby's eyes fell on me, and she said, "Hey, you're back."

"Yeah." I replied, as she sat up.

She slid over to me and wrapped her arms around me, resting her head on my shoulder, as she said, "You're late. I got worried about you."

"I'm sorry." I said, wrapping my arm around her.

"It's alright." She said, nuzzling her head into my shoulder. "I just hate it when you're late. I never know if you're actually going to come home."

"Don't worry." I said, as I brought my right hand up to her head and began slowly stroking her head. "I told you, no matter what, I'll always come back to you. No amount of shitty mercenaries could keep me from you."

"I know." She said, putting her hand on mine. I winced in pain, and she quickly pulled her hand away, and said, "Sorry."

"It's fine." I said, moving my hand to my lap. "You didn't know."

"Did you hurt your hand tonight?" She asked me, sitting up and carefully taking my hand into hers.

"Yeah." I said, as she started inspecting my hand. "Don't worry though, you know that it's not the first time that I've been hurt."

She moved to my little finger and pressed lightly on it, causing me to wince in pain, and gasp through my teeth.

"Sorry." She said, easing up on my hand. She pressed lightly on my finger again, and said, "Does your whole finger hurt?"

"Yeah." I said, as she continued inspecting my finger. She continued putting pressure on different parts of my finger, causing pain to shoot through me with every she did so, and I said, "I'm sure it's nothing."

"No, Shane, it isn't nothing." She said, releasing my hand. "I think that you may have broken it."

"What?" I asked, shocked. "How could it be broken?"

"Well, did you do anything that could have harmed your hand?" She asked me.

I thought about it, before groaning, as I realized what I did.

"Damn it." I said. "I'm a fucking idiot."

Shelby sighed, before saying, "What did you do?"

"I sort of got into a fist fight with a Machamp." I said, quietly.

"What?" She asked me. "What the hell made you think that that was a good idea?"

"Nothing, really." I replied. "But it was either get into a fist fight with him, or allow him to kill a Bayleef."

"Why didn't you just use your guns?" Shelby asked me.

"He was holding her as a bullet shield, and I didn't trust my aim." I said. "So, I rushed him and knocked him back. I guess that that punch is probably what broke my finger."

She sighed, before saying, "Shane, I love you, but you truly are stupid sometimes."

"I know." I said, pulling her into a one armed hug. "And I'm sorry for it."

"Don't be." She said, planting a kiss on my cheek. "It's one of the many things that make me love you."

I laughed, and pulled her tighter to me. She rested her head on my shoulder again, nuzzling into my neck.

"Y'know, you should probably get Celebi to look at that finger." Shelby pointed out.

I sighed, and said, "As I told ESTR, I'll be fine."

"No, you won't." She said. "You broke your fucking finger. This is serious."

"I'll be fine." I insisted. "And, besides, what the hell would I say? 'Hey, Celebi, could you help me? Yeah, I know that I was perfectly fine when we were talking after dinner, but I sort of broke my finger over night. Do you think that you could help?'" I scoffed lightly, before saying, "Yeah, that'll go over well."

"Well, then what will you do about it?" She asked me.

I sighed, and said, "I don't know. Just wait it out, I guess."

"That's a shitty idea." Shelby pointed out.

"Yeah, I know." I replied. I gently nudged her, and said, "Now, if you would kindly let me go, I can go take a quick shower, and we can get some sleep."

"Alright." She said, getting off of my shoulder.

I let go of her, and stood up. I began to take off my hoodie, but stopped and winced in pain as I hit my finger.

"Are you okay?" Shelby asked me, jumping up.

"Yeah, I just hit my finger." I replied.

"Here, let me help you." She said.

Before I could protest, she was already taking my hoodie off of my body. She nudged my arm, signaling for me to raise my arms. I complied, and she lifted the jacket up above my head, before taking it off, being careful not to hit my hand. When it was off of my body, she sat it on the bed. She reached for my shirt, but I stopped her, my uninjured hand on her wrist.

She looked up at me, confused, and I said, "Are you sure that you want to do that?"

"Of course." She said, nodding at me. I was still skeptical, but she said, "Trust me, nothing will happen. And, besides, you've slept with me shirtless multiple times."

Deciding to trust her, I released her hand. She gripped my shirt and pulled it off of me, before tossing it to the floor. She reached for my belt, but I once again stopped her.

She looked at me again, and I said, "I'm sorry, but this is where we draw the line. I don't really want to risk it."

She sighed, defeated, and said, "Yeah, you're probably right." I got some more clothes and went into the bathroom, with Shelby saying after me, "But, if you need any help, just tell me."

"Okay." I said, closing the door.

I dropped my clothes on the counter and finished stripping, wincing every time that I hit my finger, and got into the shower. I bathed rather quickly, and got dressed in a few seconds. I stepped out of the bathroom to see that Shelby was lying on the bed, already asleep again. I turned off the lights and got onto the bed behind Shelby, trying not to wake her. I wrapped my arm around her, and she moved closer to me, her head resting against my chest. With that, we fell asleep.

* * *

I appeared to be the first to wake up, and I did so with me hand still around Shelby. I moved myself slightly, but it appeared to be enough to wake up Shelby, as she lifted her head, before looking around.

"Sorry about that." I said, kissing her on the cheek. "I hadn't meant to wake you up."

"It's perfectly fine." Shelby said, spinning around to look at me. "It's not like I didn't get more sleep than you already. And, besides, I've been awake for about an hour, anyway."

I chuckled lightly, and said, "Well then, now that I'm awake, would you like to go and get some breakfast?"

"Sure." She replied, before kissing me.

We got up, being careful not to hit my hand, and Shelby left my room, like we always do. I got a shirt out and put it on, before leaving, as well. By the time that I got to the cafeteria, Shelby was just leaving.

As we passed, she whispered into my ear, "Same place?"

"Of course." I replied.

I entered the cafeteria to find that it was fairly empty, although still had a fair amount of people in it. I got my breakfast, consisting of nothing more than some bacon and an orange, and left the room. I went to the main entrance and left the Hall, shockingly not coming across anyone on the way. I entered the forest, making my way to our cabin. We had found it a few days ago, when Shelby actually had free time. We had been wandering around the woods, when we found a small cabin. It had only one room, but the room had a fireplace in it, as well as a couch and a coffee table, both of which were covered in dust. We cleaned the place up some, and now we used it as our own get away place. As I made my way through the forest, the seemingly endless snowfall that had started a few days ago being kept away from me by the trees, I could hear the sounds of the Pokemon of the forest roaming around, most of them probably finding food to store for the winter. After a few minutes, I could see the wood cabin through the trees. I sped up slightly, eager to not only be out of the slight cold, but also to be with Shelby again. I entered the cabin to see Shelby sitting on the couch, and a small fire, not large enough to produce a lot of smoke, but large enough to provide some heat and light, already in the fireplace.

"Hey." She greeted, as I closed the door.

"Hello." I returned, sitting on the couch next to her.

We began eating, not talking, just enjoying each other's company. After multiple minutes, though, Shelby cleared her throat, breaking the silence.

"So, I was thinking." She started.

"Okay." I said, swallowing a slice of orange. "About what?"

"About what you do." She replied. Knowing what she was meaning, I nodded, and she continued, "Well, recently you've been getting into a lot of close calls, and I've been worrying about you."

"Okay." I said, interested.

"And, well, as much I know that you won't like it, but I want you to take a vacation from it." She said, the last part coming out quickly, as if she was scared of my reaction.

"What?" I asked, shocked. "A vacation?"

"Yes." She replied. "I think that you should take a small break from being X."

I sighed, before saying, "Shelby, you know that I can't do that. I mean, people depend on me."

"I know that. But, remember, I depend on you, too." She said. "And, I mean, recently you've almost been hurt multiple times, and then last night you came home with a broken finger. And, honestly, most nights I'm not even sure if you'll come home at all."

As she finished, her voice began wavering. I looked down at her head on my shoulder, and saw that she was looking up at me, tears beginning to form in her eyes. I sighed, knowing my answer immediately.

"Alright." I said. "Since you care for me so much, I'll take a break for a little bit."

"Thanks." She said, bringing me into a tight hug. As she pulled away, she wiped her tears on the sleeve of her jacket, before saying, "Y'know, I honestly wasn't sure if you would go with it."

I pulled her closer to me, and said, "Of course I'm going with it. I can't stand to see you so sad."

"I know." She said, hugging me again. "And that's another reason that I love you."

I just laughed, wrapping my arm around her.

"So," Shelby said, "since we're both done, do you want to go and wander around?"

"Sure." I replied.

We got up and, after pouring some of a bottle of water that we kept in the cabin onto the fire, we left. After a while, Shelby reached into her pocket, bringing out her vibrating phone.

She looked at it and sighed, saying, "It's Darkrai. She says that I have training in five minutes."

I groaned, and said, "Seriously? That fucking sucks."

"Yeah." Shelby said, sadly. She suddenly perked up, saying, "Hey, maybe you could come and watch."

"I don't know." I said. "I mean, I doubt that Darkrai would enjoy me being there."

"So?" She said. "Please come."

I sighed, and said, "Fine."

"Awesome." She said. "Now, c'mon, let's go."

We started through the forest, heading back to the Hall, almost running, so that Shelby got there on time. We made it back to the Hall in just enough time, and we quickly continued to the training room. When we got there, we saw that Darkrai was already waiting in there, with Mew, who was currently in her preferred form, being her small floating cat-like form, rather than her morph form, and her Champion Ellie, and Espeon that, as of late, has actually seemed to not hate me, standing a short distance away.

"Good, you're here." Darkrai greeted, as we entered. Her eyes suddenly fell on me, glaring, and her voice went to a low growl, as she said, "What do you want, Shane?"

"I've merely come to observe." I replied, calmly. "There's no rule against that, is there?"

I could tell that I was correct, as she just rolled her eyes and said, "Fine, just stay up in the stands."

I nodded, and started for the ladder to the first balcony. I climbed it with a minor amount of difficulty, as I tried to avoid hitting my finger on the rungs or side. When I was up at the seats, I chose one in the front row, and sat down.

As I looked down at the field, Darkrai asked Mew, "So, who goes first?"

"How about you two?" Mew replied. "I still have yet to see a fight between you and Shelby."

"Alright then." Darkrai replied. "Shelby, to your side."

"Right." Shelby said, nodding.

She went to stand in front of the door, while Darkrai went to the opposite wall. As they did this, Mew and Ellie went off of the field to the side.

"ESTR." Darkrai called out.

"Yes, Darkrai?" The blue girl said, appearing next to her.

"We are ready." Darkrai responded.

"Of course." ESTR said. "Begin!"

A bell rang, and the fight began. I was only half paying attention to the fight, more focused on getting ESTR's attention. Her eyes finally fell on me, and I nodded slightly, signaling that I need to speak with her. She nodded in return, before disappearing from her current location and reappearing next to me.

"Yes, Shane?" She asked me.

"Listen, I don't think that we'll be going out for a little bit." I said. "I don't know how long, but for a few days, at least."

"Oh?" ESTR asked me, curious. "Why?"

"Shelby got worried about me after she saw my hand last night." I explained. "She thinks that I may have broken my finger, so she wants me to take a small vacation for a little bit. She said that I've had too many close calls recently, and that last night was the last straw. So, it'll be at least a few days before she'll be calmed down enough for us to head out again."

"Alright." ESTR replied. "I can see where she's coming from, so I have no issue with it." I glared up at her, and she shrugged, before saying, "Well, it's true. You've almost been injured multiple times recently, and I don't want you to get hurt."

I sighed, and said, "Yeah, I know. Anyway, I just wanted to let you know so that there's no confusion as to why I'm not here tonight."

"Alright." She replied.

As ESTR returned to the battlefield, my attention returned to the fight. It finally ended when Darkrai knocked Shelby off of her feet, before knocking her weapons away. This caused a loud buzzer to go off, and ESTR declared Darkrai the victor.

"That was wonderful, Shelby." Darkrai praised, as she helped Shelby to her feet. Her eyes suddenly fell on me, and she said, "That's what a fight between a Champion and their Legend should look like, should the Champion actually care about their job."

I just rolled my eyes in response, letting out an exasperated sigh.

"Anyway," Mew said, obviously trying to defuse the situation, "now, I guess it's Ellie's turn to go against me."

"Of course." Darkrai said, prying her eyes from me.

As Mew and Ellie took to the field, I just leaned back in my seat, closing my eyes and sighed in annoyance.


	7. Will Anywhere Ever be Safe for You?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, look, an update. Anyway, I apologize, but this chapter is actually slightly late. Yeah, some of you are probably fucking confused as to what I mean by "late" as I updated really recently, so I'll explain. Recently, I've taken to this odd schedule of staying up until eight in the morning writing, putting out whatever chapter I finished, and then just downing about a pot of coffee while playing Hearthstone, followed by an hour or two of sleep at around noon. So, yeah, it's about nine thirty as I post this, therefor, it is late for me. Anyway, that happened. So, I don't actually think that I have any reviews to respond to, so let's get going.

 

* * *

 

**Will Anywhere Ever be Safe for You?**

Shelby and I were alone, laying on the forest floor, just staring up at the sky, as stars slowly formed in it, the sun set already behind the trees. Normally we wouldn't be able to do this, with it being within the last week of November, as the ground is normally blanketed with snow. But, thankfully, the weather has been kind to us recently, so we've been able to be outside much more. She suddenly rolled over, rolling onto me. She dug her head into my chest, and let out a content sigh.

"Having you here for the past week has been so amazing." She said; her voice slightly muffled due to her current position. "It's so wonderful to be able to wake up in the morning and have you next to me, completely safe, and not have to wonder if you'll make it back at all."

I smiled and wrapped my arms around her, pulling her closer to me.

"I have to agree, it has been wonderful." I agreed, kissing her on the top of her head. "Waking up to have you wrapped up in my arms, and feeling sore as hell, is amazing."

Shelby looked up at me, and said, "Speaking of your little escapades as X, when will you actually tell the others?"

I sighed, and said, "Honestly, I don't think that I ever will."

"Why not?" She asked. "I mean, it'd probably make the others start actually respecting you, and you would actually be taken on missions."

"Besides the fact that I'm pretty sure that I'm breaking some rule," I replied, "I honestly wouldn't really want the others to respect me."

"Seriously?" She said, rising up from my chest slightly. "But it would make both of our lives much easier."

"Because it'd just seem way too weird." I answered. "That, and you heard what Chelsea said. With how much of a fanatic of X she is, I honestly don't know if discovering that I'm X would deter her. Honestly, it'd probably excite her, and make her actually act on her dreams, just because she would now have access to the person that she wants. And, I mean, with how much the whole Hall seems to love X, the other Champions possibly have the exact same thought in their head."

"Yeah, that wouldn't be very fun for you, would it?" She said. "That, and I'd be fairly miffed at all of them, as well as you."

"I would be miffed at myself, as well." I said. As I watched the moon slowly rise above the trees, I asked, "So, should we head back?"

Shelby looked up at the sky, and sighed, before saying, "I really don't feel like it. Can we just sleep outside tonight?"

"I don't see why not." I said, shrugging. "I mean, it's not snowing right now, so we should be good."

"Wonderful." She replied, snuggling down deeper into my chest. "Good night, Shane."

"G'night, Shelby." I said.

The moon continued rising over the trees, as our breathing slowed and we fell asleep.

* * *

I woke up to see the sun rising over the trees. I blinked in my drowsiness, yawing quietly. I glanced down, and saw that Shelby was still sleeping on my chest, her ears draped over her face, drifting up slightly with every exhale that she took. I moved my hand from the small of her back and up to her head, which I stroked softly. I froze as I heard a small giggle coming from behind me. I turned my head around, to see that Anna was standing at the edge of the trees, a small smile on her lips.

"You two make a cute couple." She said, her fluffy tail twitching in amusement.

I sighed, and said, "How much have you seen?"

"Not much, really." She replied. "I mean, I've only been sitting here for about five or six minutes."

"Please don't tell anyone." I begged. "We'd get kicked out, and I couldn't stand for that to happen to Shelby."

"Relax, your secret is safe with me." She reassured me. "You two are the only other Champions that I actually like here. That, and, as I said, you two make such an adorable couple."

I sighed with relief, and said, "Thank you, so much. I know that, despite my own feelings for this job, and the ones that I work with, Shelby here loves the job. I couldn't forgive myself if I caused her to lose it."

"Aww, that's so adorable." She said, walking over to me. She bent down and patted my head, saying, "It's so nice to see that you care so much for her, even willing to put her before yourself."

I just sighed, and mumbled, "Yeah, you don't know the half of it."

"What?" She asked, confused.

"Nothing." I said, shaking my head lightly. "So, is there any specific reason as to why you came out here, or were you just wandering?"

"No, there is a purpose." She said, standing up. "Arceus has called for Shelby. Apparently, she gets to go on another mission."

I nodded, and said, "Alright, thanks."

"No problem." She replied, walking away. Just before she disappeared into the trees, she turned around, and said, "And, in the future, try not to fall asleep together out in the open, especially this close to the Hall. You never know, I may not have been the first to find you."

I nodded, and said, "Yeah, thanks."

She nodded back, and left our small clearing. I sighed, dropping my head to the ground.  _She's right, y'know. As much as I loved this, it could have been a disaster. Oh well, that's in the past._

I shook Shelby slightly, trying to wake her up, and said, "Hey, Shelby, you're needed."

She stirred lightly, and looked up at me, her eyes drooping with tire, and mumbled out, "What?"

"You've been called upon." I replied. "Apparently, you have a new mission tonight."

"Really?" She asked, rising from my chest slightly. I nodded, and she said, "Awesome."

She got off of my chest and stood up, as did I. She was about to rush out of the clearing, before I stopped her, my hand on her shoulder.

She turned to me, and I said, "Seeing as we both know that she'll want you training all day, can I have a goodbye hug?"

She wrapped her arms around me, and said, "I'll see you at dinner."

"Yeah, you too." I said, returning the hug.

We let go of each other, and she took off through the trees. I sighed deeply, as she disappeared from my view. I sank to the ground, starting to feel slightly sad.

"Yeah," I said, to myself, "you go off and have fun, being a fucking hero that actually gets known for the work, while I continue working in the shadows, never being identified, and rarely being seen. Y'know, good old Shane, doing more fucking work in the past few months than any of the Champions have ever done." I sighed, putting my head in my hands, "Although, I do suppose that that is all my fault. I mean, I could be getting renown, I could be getting showered in praise and honor, but, no, I'm just sitting here, having to hide my skill and work, all for some reason that not even I know."

I just sat there, my head in my hands, debating what I could do. I eventually got up and started walking through the woods. After about sixty minutes or so, I heard footsteps around me, and I froze.

"Well, well, well," a voice said, "what do we have here?"

Watching the trees around me, I saw Latios and Latias step out of them, smirks on their faces.

I sighed in annoyance, and said, "What do you two want?"

"Well," Latios said, the blue haired girl stalking closer to me, "we just wanted to come out and see you."

"And, of course, teach you a lesson." Latias finished.

"A lesson?" I asked, curious. "What lesson do you need to teach me?"

"Well, you see," Latios answered, "we've recently grown tired of a disgusting male such as yourself living here."

"So, we decided to 'persuade' you to leave." Latias said. "And I'm sure that others will appreciate it." She got up in my face, and said, "Especially Darkrai."

I felt my fists clench tightly, and I had to resist slamming them into the two women in front of me.

"Go away now." I commanded.

"Oh?" Latios said. "And why should we?"

"Because if you don't, then bad things will happen to you two." I growled out, my patience wearing thin.

Latias laughed, and said, "Oh, please. Like you could do anything to us. You're just a puny little weakling, nothing more than a disgusting excuse for a piece of flesh, you horrid male."

With that, she slammed a fist into my stomach, causing me to double over. The surprise attack was quickly followed up by a kick to my jaw from Latios, sending me flying to the ground. I barely had time to react, before the blue haired woman flew at me, a glowing Dragon Claw on her hand, aimed at my head. I rolled out of the way, but the claw still nicked me, sending a gash down my right cheek. As her claw stuck into the dirt where my head previously was, I took the chance to get up. I stood there, panting, as I watched Latias walk over and stand by her sister.

"What the fuck is up with you two?" I yelled, tasting metal, as my blood flowed from the gash in my cheek and into my mouth. "Fucking insulting me is one thing, but now you're just blatantly breaking the rules and assaulting me. What the hell?"

Latios just laughed, and said, "As we already told you, we got tired of you living here. So, we're changing that."

With that, they both started charging an attack in their hands, Latias with a Dragon Pulse, and Latios with a Dragon Breath.

"Listen to me." I said, my voice calming down. "This is your last chance. You can leave now and no one has to know about this, or you can continue and I will be sure to inform Arceus of this."

Latios laughed, before mockingly saying, "Oh, we're so scared of Arceus. Just because that little bitch is out leader doesn't mean shit."

"She isn't that good of a leader if she would allow a weakling such as you to stay here, anyway." Latias added.

And, with that, they let their attacks free, aimed directly at me. Before I had a chance to move, the attacks made contact, knocking me off of my feet and sending me flying. As I was flung through the air, I felt two things. I could feel my back snapping trees in half as I flew through them, and I could feel my shirt catch fire from the odd draconic flames. I stopped flying after going through what felt like five trees, and I hit another one to stop, which cause me to drop down to the forest floor. I fell on my side, where I coughed up blood, feeling the darkness of unconsciousness begin its approach.  _No, stay awake, damn it._ I continued fighting the blackness, as I heard the two Eons begin to speak.

Latios scoffed, and said, "That seemed almost too easy. What shall we do now?"

"Well, we could always try and use our 'persuasive skills' on that trash fucker, as well." Latias replied. "It's not like we'll lose anything by her leaving."

That sentence seemed to do it for me. I snapped, losing my shit. I slowly staggered up, summoning Strife as I did. I then used my newfound burst of strength to dash over to the women, ignoring the intense pain, the desire to pass out, and the impending blackness. They both turned around to look at me, as I swung out with Strife. The blade hit both of them, not hard enough to cut, as I still couldn't hit that strength in my condition, but it did knock them off of their feet.

"Never fucking call her that again!" I yelled at them, as they hit the ground.

They immediately jumped up, and Latios said, "So, is the little fuck not done with his beating yet? Well, I'll be happy to oblige, should he want more."

She then leapt at me, and I did the only thing that I could think of. I stabbed. A piercing shriek of pain filled the air as the blade of Strife entered Latios's stomach, just below her breasts. She sunk lower onto the blade, her blood coating the blade as she did. I looked down and saw that her eyes were locked with mine, a mixture of defiance and a small amount of fear in them. When she reached the hilt of the blade, I put my boot on her chest and pushed down as hard as I could, causing her to slide off, with some difficulty. As her body hit the ground, her sister came rushing over, dropping to her knees. She looked up at me, tears in her eyes.

"What have you done?" She asked, through sobs.

"Oh, get the hell over it." I replied. "She's a Legend. So long as her body stays whole, she'll just come back to life in a few hours. Right now, she's essentially just passed out. If you don't believe me, just put your hand on her chest. It'll leave her with nothing more than a large scar."

She complied, placing her hand between her sisters blood splattered breasts. Looking closely, I could see that her hand was rising and falling steadily, aligned with her sister's breaths. As she sat there, I get rid of Strife and started through the woods, headed for the Hall. I had been walking for no more than five minutes, when I suddenly collapsed, unable to walk anymore. I dropped to the ground and, subsequently, into blackness.

* * *

When I awoke, I could see that the sun was falling behind the trees. I tried to get up, but fell to the ground in pain. I looked down at my body, wanting to do a quick examination of my injuries. I was covered in dry blood, and I saw that my shirt was barely more than a rag covering my chest, filled with holes burnt into the cloth. My jeans were in slightly better condition, although they appeared to be torn apart by the five trees that I smashed through. I attempted to move my legs, but I felt a jolting pain in my right one at my attempt.  _Arceus, have I really broken something else? Fuck, now either the injuries will kill me, or Shelby will._ I could feel that I had been cut in more places on my body, and that they were starting to bleed again. I tried to stand up again, actually accomplishing it this time. A large jolt of pain shot up my body whenever I put pressure on my right leg, so I summoned Strife to use as a crutch. I then started the painful and slow walk back to the Hall. By the time that I arrived, I could barely keep myself up, even with the use of Strife. As I crossed the small garden, I could feel eyes watching me. I turned my head to see that Entei, Mewtwo, and Zapdos were eying me, obviously shocked. I just ignored them, as I entered the Hall. I started for the infirmary, dripping blood as I went, just as I had on my way through the woods. As I went, I passed Darkrai and Mew, but I paid them no attention, just keeping my head down. I reached the infirmary and opened the door to find it empty, thank Arceus. I entered, closing the door behind me, and went to one of the beds. I dropped down on it with a sigh, returning Strife as I did so. I took the remains of my shirt off to inspect my wounds. I threw the remains of the cloth as I checked out my arms. I had a few minor cuts, as well as some splinters embedded in my flesh, but nothing major. As I was reaching for my pants, the door suddenly opened, revealing Shelby standing there, worry carved into her face.

She immediately rushed in, slamming the door behind her, and said, "Arceus, Shane, what happened?"

"It's nothing." I replied, wincing in pain, as I waved it off. "Just some minor injuries."

"Minor?" She said, dropping to her knees next to me. "Shane, you look like you just lost a fight with a Tyranitar."

I sighed, and said, "Well, the victor of the fight is sort of undecided."

"You actually did get into a fight?" She asked, shocked. "Was it actually with a Tyranitar?"

"No, don't worry." I replied. "No dinosaurs, just dragons."

"Dragons?" She said, confused. After a few seconds, she said, "Wait a minute, you don't mean the Eons, do you?" I nodded, and she said, "How could they attack you? That's completely against the rules. We've got to report them to Arceus, she'll deal with-"

She was cut off, as I held my hand up.

"Don't worry about it." I replied. "I've already taken care of their punishment."

"How?" She asked. "What could you have done to them?"

I chuckled, ignoring the pain in my ribs, and said, "I made one hell of a scar on Latios's stomach."

"What?" Shelby asked, confused. "What do you mean?" I just shrugged, and she covered her mouth in shock, and said, "Did you seriously do it? You killed her?"

"Only temporarily." I replied. "The only way to completely kill a Legend is to destroy the body beyond repair. Honestly, if she hasn't woken up by now, than she should soon."

Shelby sighed, before saying, "I don't know how you did it, and I won't ask. What's important now, though, is fixing you up."

"Without anyone else knowing, of course." I added. She nodded, and I said, "How about this, I'll stitch up my cheek, while you go and get me a change of pants."

She nodded, and stood up. As she left the room, I opened the drawer on the bedside table and pulled out a bottle of painkillers, a needle, and some thread. I threaded the needle and began stitching the gash on my cheek. Just as I was finishing up, Shelby came back into the room, holding another pair of my black jeans in her hands.

"Here." She said, holding out the jeans, as I put the stitching supplies back in the drawer.

"Thank you." I replied, accepting the pants.

As she turned around, I reached for the zipper on my pants and undid it, but stopped and hissed in pain as I started moving them down from my waist. At this, Shelby turned around, worry still etched on her face, only now renewed.

She dropped down next to me and reached for my jeans, saying, "Here, let me help you."

"No." I said. "I can get it."

"No, Shane, you can't." She replied. "Just let me help you."

"I won't let you." I said, backing up some. "I don't want your heat to-"

I was interrupted by Shelby saying, "Damn it, Shane, I can keep my heat under control for a few seconds. Just let me help you."

I looked down at her, and saw a concerned look in her eyes. I sighed, moving my hand from my jeans.

"Fine, I submit." I said. "Just, if you start to lose it, back off and leave the room. I don't want you to try and do anything, especially with me in my current state."

She nodded, and reached for my jeans once again. She helped me change pants fairly smoothly, although she did appear to hover over my groin for an extended amount of time whenever she passed it. But, needless to say, it was embarrassing for both of us.

"There." She said, rising. "That wasn't too bad."

I looked at her face, and I could see a deep blush, visible even through her orange fur.

"Right." I said. I pocketed the other bottle of painkillers, and said, "Can you help me back to my room? I did something to my leg, and I can't really walk."

"Of course." She replied, as I stood up and tossed my arm around her. "Ready?"

I nodded, and we left the room. She helped me walk down to my door, before opening it and entering, before slowly lowering me to my bed, as well as moving one of my three pillows that we share to the foot of the bed, using it to elevate my leg. As I hit the bed, a thought occurred to me, one that frightened me.  _What if they come after me tonight? I couldn't defend myself, even I was awake, in my current condition._

"Hey, Shelby?" I said. "Could you lock the door?"

"Why?" She asked.

I gulped, on the verge of frightened tears, and said, "Just do it, please. For me?"

Apparently the fear was clear in my voice, as she froze slightly, before nodding, and saying, "Sure."

She went over to the door and turned the lock with a click.

"Will you stay with me tonight, as well?" I asked.

"Of course." She replied, dropping down to the floor next to me. "Besides, it's not like I haven't been recently, anyway."

I nodded, and said, "Thanks."

"No problem." She replied. "Anything else?"

"Can you hit the lights please?" I asked.

She nodded, before getting up and turning off the lights.

"Goodnight, Shelby." I said into the darkness, as I heard her sit down again.

"Goodnight, Shane." She returned, before placing a kiss on my cheek.

I then fell into a restless sleep.

* * *

P.O.V Change: Shelby

I sighed as I sat there next to the sleeping Umbreon that is my boyfriend. A few minutes after he fell asleep, he started fidgeting some, so I brought my hand up to his head and began slowly stroking him, smoothing out his fur. This action seemed to calm him down, thankfully.

"Oh, Shane," I said, continuing my previous action, "what am I going to do with you? You're not safe out in the field, and you're at even more of a risk at home." I sighed again, saying, "Will anywhere ever be safe for you, Shane?"

He obviously didn't respond, instead just sinking lowed into his pillow and muttering something that sounded like "Shelby."

I smiled down at the handsome Umbreon that I loved, leaning down to kiss him.

"I love you so much, Shane Zeich." I said, to myself.

* * *

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, yeah, this was a chapter. Y'know, it actually struck a chord in me to watch Shane not only get his ass kicked, but also get scared for his life. Yeah, it was sad. But, that's how it was written. So, I guess that I'm here now for some comic relief. Well, get over it, that doesn't always happen.
> 
> Yeah, that's sort of my little rule that I made for the Legends. Fun fact: sat here for, like, ten minutes trying to think of where I got it from while writing, and as soon as I put this in the doc manager, I remembered. If any of you have ever seen Black Butler it comes from there. In it, demons can not die, so long as their body can be repaired, and they aren't killed by a special kind of weapon. Anyway, yeah, that's where it came from.
> 
> So, if you liked the chapter, as well as a new side of Shane that will be in more chapters to come, I invite you to drop me a favorite and/or a follow, on the story or myself. If you truly want to express your opinion, other than a simple "I like this" feel free to drop a review. See-yah, guys.


	8. I'm so Fucking Weak and Useless

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, readers, and welcome to the next chapter of this story, and the last of No Sleep Link that you'll see for a while. Now, some of you may be confused as hell as to what I mean by that, so let me explain. So, it is currently two thirteen in the morning, on August first. The last time I truly slept for more than, like, thirty minutes, was July thirtieth. So, I woke up at ten in the morning on the thirtieth, and haven't really slept since then. Therefor, I am currently No Sleep Link, and I am ending this No Sleep trilogy now. I say trilogy, due to the fact that I put up two chapters in this time on my new story, Living a Life of Odd Luxury. Therefor, trilogy. Anyway, no, that doesn't mean that I'm ending any stories, I'm just being a smartass. Anyway, shall we continue? Yeah, let's go.

 

* * *

** I'm so Fucking Weak and Useless **

I opened my eyes to see the ceiling of my bedroom. I went to sit up and stretch, but quickly found that my arms and legs were tied to my bed.  _What the hell?_ I started pulling on my arm restraints, trying to free myself. Suddenly, the door to my room creaked open. My eyes shot to it, to see a blue haired woman enter, her hands behind her back.

She came over to me, and said, "Aww, is out little helpless Umbreon awake?"

"Let me the hell go, Latios." I demanded, pulling on the arm restraints again.

"Or what?" She asked me, sneering. "Or you'll yell for help? Or you'll cry for the mommy that never loved you in the first place?" She laughed, before saying, "Face it. You have no one that cares for you anymore. I mean, Darkrai did, but you ruined that."

"Bullshit!" I yelled back. "Shelby cares for me, I know it."

Latios laughed again, before tying a piece of cloth around my head and stuffing it into my mouth, gagging me, and said, "Do you really think that she gives a single fuck about you? Hell no! She never did. She was just playing with you, using you as her toy. I mean, if she truly cared about you, would she have not only left you all alone, but also left our door unlocked for me?"

 _No! Bullshit! Shelby cares for me._ I tried to fight her words, push them from my head. But, as much as I fought her words, the truth in them hit me each time I heard them in my head.  _Maybe she's right. Did Shelby really never care for me? Was I nothing more than a tool, a doll for her to play with, only to dispose of when she got bored with it?_ As these thoughts penetrated my head, I could feel myself succumbing the them, and my resistance weakened.

"So, I see that you finally see the truth, don't you?" Latios said, smirking. "Well then, allow me to help you find your own peace." She brought her hands out in front of her, revealing a large knife, as she said, "And, luckily for you, you aren't a Legend. So, you won't regenerate."

As she brought the tip of the blade to my throat, I did no more than just sit there, accepting my fate. I felt her slash the blade across my neck, freeing my saddened soul from its joyless husk.

* * *

I shot up in my bed, a cold sweat covering my body, soaking my shirt. I tried to move my right leg, but stopped as a jolt of pain shot through it. I gritted my teeth against the pain, grunting quietly. I felt movement next to me, and I looked down to see that Shelby was lying next to me, asleep. I felt myself go to the verge of tears, and I dropped my head into my hands.  _A dream. That's all it was, Shane. Just a dream. Shelby truly does love you, and you have no need to fear for your life, not with someone as capable as Shelby next to you._ Even though I knew that this was the truth, I couldn't stop the tears from falling. I tried to stifle my sobs as much as possible, but I appeared to fail, as I suddenly felt a pair of arms wrap around me.

"Was it the same one as always?" Shelby asked me.

I shook my head, not removing my hands.

"A new one?" She inquired, sounding shocked. "Really?" I nodded, and she said, "Will you tell me about it?"

I just sat there, trying to calm myself down. After a few minutes, the tears stopped, as did the sobs that were racking my body.

"Now then," Shelby said, holding me, "do you want to tell me about the dream?" I shook my head, and she said, "C'mon, Shane. You know that nothing will get better if you just keep it to yourself."

I looked at her, and I saw the care and worry in her eyes, and I caved immediately.

"Alright." I said, whimpering slightly. I sighed, before beginning, "It started off like the others, where I'm tied to the bed, alone. Then, just like always, Latios came in, her hands behind her back. Then she came over to me, and bent down to me, and started… she started…"

I couldn't go any further, as I kept had to fight back tears.

"Shh, shh, it's okay." Shelby said, patting my back. "You don't have to tell me if you truly don't want to."

I shook my head, and said, "No, I can do it. Then she started telling me that no one cares about me, nor have they ever. She taunted me about Darkrai, she taunted me about my mother, she…" I could feel more tears starting to form, but I fought through them, "she taunted me about you. She told me that you never really cared about me, and that I was just a toy to you, and that my emotions meant nothing to you."

She pulled my head closer to her, cradling me at her chest, slowly petting my fur, and she said, "Don't worry, Shane. That's not true, trust me. I promise, you're the most important thing in my life, and I don't ever want anyone to tell you otherwise. Okay?"

I nodded, feeling the backed up tears go away. She held me like this for multiple more minutes, just petting my head, until I felt my heart rate return to normal, and I stopped shaking.

"I-I'm good." I said, removing my head from her arms.

"Good." She said, kissing me on the cheek. "Now, how about we go back to sleep?"

I nodded, and we both lay back down. After a few minutes, I heard Shelby's breathing slow down, signaling that she had fallen asleep, but I just laid there, deep in thought.

* * *

I can't quite recall when I fell asleep, but the next thing I remember is waking up, my arm around Shelby. I had barely moved, when I felt the Flareon next to me shift. She turned her head around to face me, before kissing me.

"Good morning." She said.

"Morning." I replied, rather offhandedly.

"So, you wanna go and get some breakfast?" Shelby asked me, standing up.

"I'm not really hungry," I replied, "so I don't want anything."

"Really?" She asked me. "Nothing?"

"Really." I replied, scooting over to the edge of the bed. "Now, can you please help me?"

"Yeah." She said, bending down to me.

I put my arm around her Shelby's shoulders, and she helped lift me up. When she had a proper grip on me, we left my room, before slowly going down the hall.

"So," Shelby asked me, "do you want me to just take you to our hideout while I get food?"

"Yeah, that's fine." I replied.

We went past the cafeteria and left the Hall. We entered the forest and went straight to our hideout. She opened the door, and we entered.

"Here." She said, gently sitting me down on the couch.

"Thank you." I said, as she went to leave.

"I'll be back in a minute." She said, as she left, closing the door behind her.

As I heard Shelby's footsteps retreat, my mind began to wander. I was so lost in my thoughts that I didn't even notice that she had returned until she sat down next to me, leaning on my shoulder.

"Hey." She said after a few minutes, getting my attention.

"Yes?" I asked.

"What's with you today?" She asked me.

"What do you mean?" I replied.

"You've just been extremely distracted today." She said. "What's up?"

"Nothing, really." I replied.

She sighed, and said, "C'mon, Shane. You and I both know that I can tell when there's something going on. So, come on, what is it?"

I sighed, knowing that she was right, and took the opportunity to vent my frustration, "It's just that I'm so fucking weak and useless."

"What do you mean?" Shelby asked. "You aren't weak and useless."

"Yes, I am." I insisted. "I mean, look at me. I can't even walk around without help, let alone go out as X. Have you paid any attention to the news recently?" She shook her head, so I said, "They're calling me a fraud, saying that I was just in it for the fame, and as soon as the Organization stepped up their game, I back down. They're saying that I'm scared."

"Shane, that isn't your fault." She said. "And it sure as hell doesn't make you weak."

"No, but do you know what does?" I countered. "Waking up in the middle of the night, scared out of my mind, by a dream. Something that I know can't hurt me, something that only small children get frightened by. Yet, here I am, waking you up at who the hell knows what time in the morning with my tears of fear."

Shelby pulled me into a hug, and said, "Shane, that doesn't make you weak, and it doesn't make you vulnerable. All it means is that you are human."

I sighed, and said, "Well, then, I can't stand being human. I can't stand going to sleep every night with the fear that the Eons will sneak in and finish the job. And I absolutely can't stand the fear that they'll take you out with me."

"That won't happen." She reassured me.

"How can you guarantee that?" I asked. "Yes, you're a good fighter, but I'm not sure if you're good enough to take on two Legends at once."

"No, I don't think that I'm that good, either." She agreed. "But, I also don't think that it will ever come down to that. I'm sure that if Arceus ever heard of anything like that, she'd go after them immediately."

"Yeah, I hope so." I said, sighing.

Shelby looked like she was about to say something, but she was interrupted by her phone going off. She pulled it from her pocket, and let out a sigh.

"Well, it looks like I have training." She said. "Do you want me to bring you back to your room?"

I sighed, and said, "Yes, please."

* * *

I just continued lying there in bed, Shelby next to me.  _Fuck, I feel so useless. Hell, I can't even stand being cooped up in here._ Making up my mind, I started getting off of the bed. I somehow managed to do so without waking Shelby up, which was an accomplishment in itself. I had Strife appear in my hand.  _Sorry for this, buddy._ I then proceeded to use Strife as a crutch, as I left the room and went down the hallway, heading for the Hall's exit. I left the Hall and stepped out into the garden. It had snowed earlier today, so there was a blanket of white covering the ground, with the moonlight sparkling off of it beautifully. I just sat down in the snow, thinking. Before I knew it, I had fallen asleep in the middle of the snowy garden.

* * *

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, good chapter? Yeah, I know, it's short. I'll try and put out a longer chapter soon, but we'll see. So, fun fact, due to my intense tiredness, I almost changed that last section of the story, which honestly would have changed pretty much the rest of the story in all. So, yeah, writing while intensely tired isn't a good thing, kids. Oh, and, if anyone is curious, I also started the poll story, Ashes to Ashes... as well, and the first chapter is up now. So, have fun. See you guys soon, this time completely awake.


	9. The Return of the Unsung Hero

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ladies and gentlemen, I have another chapter for your faces. So, this is it kids. This is the return of our favorite unsung hero. But, first, reviews.
> 
> Orthodox: So, assuming that by "said overdose" you are referring to the fact that I use said much more than any other dialogue indicator, I am actually getting better about that. Trust me, I know that I'm bad about it, but I'm getting better about it. The commas, on the other hand, will take some time. Honestly, the reason that I put an abundance of them actually stems from a problem that I had as a child. When I was younger, I would pretty much never put commas anywhere, so now my mind is extremely careful, and I put fifty thousand of them, fearing that I'm going to miss places where they should be. But, once again, I am getting better on them, and I thank you for the feedback, criticism, and praise.
> 
> Zavender: Dude, if you're looking for anything sexual that is more than one couple, you'll have to check my other stories later. Not now, as I'm not that far, but later. But, I can deliver a fight scene this chapter, so, enjoy it.
> 
> Ddreamer9159: Done. :)
> 
> LostSoul: So, you're either on Ch.1 or Ch.2. On Ch.1, that is because I just had to deal with my story being taken down and having to be put back up, so, yeah, I was annoyed. On Ch.2 I was just having a shit day. Also, I'm putting this here, yet I don't even know if you're still reading. Well, I hope you are.

 

* * *

 

**The Return of the Unsung Hero**

I opened my eyes to find that I was back on my bed, my head in Shelby's lap. She was currently running her hand over my head, staring down at me.

"So, you're awake." She commented upon noticing that my eyes were open.

"Yeah." I replied, sitting up. "So, what am I doing in here?"

"Celebi went out this morning to do her daily check to make sure that the cold didn't kill any plants, and she found you asleep in the snow." She replied. "So, she brought you in here, to me."

"Oh." I said, looking down.

"Why did you even go out there?" She asked me. "Why would you risk freezing to death?"

I shrugged, and replied, "I hadn't intended to fall asleep. I just wanted some fresh air."

"Well, don't do that again." She said, pulling me into a hug. "I was worried about you. Your breath was really slow, and you were cold to the touch."

"I'm sorry." I apologized. Having a sudden thought, I asked, "Wait, did Celebi notice my leg?"

"No." Shelby reassured me. "She didn't notice anything other than how cold you were." She stood up, and said, "C'mon. Arceus called for a meeting."

"About what?" I asked, as Shelby helped me up.

"I'm not quite sure." She replied. "Really, it doesn't seem like anyone knows."

Shelby opened my door and we left. I positioned myself how I normally do when we know that we will be in front of the others. I put my arm around her waist, and lightly put my foot down, giving the illusion that I was walking. We started for the meeting room, walking slowly. We entered unnoticed, and Shelby took the long way to her seat, allowing her to help me to my own. Upon sitting down, I saw Darkrai send a quick glance my way, before facing forward. Shelby appeared to get to her seat just in time, as Arceus entered the room, Anna following her closely.

"I imagine that you are all curious as to why this meeting has been called, so I shall cut to the chase." The white stag addressed us. "So, as we all know, we have recently had some help from a third party, one by the name of X."

At this, Shelby and I both locked eyes.

"Well, it appears that our helper has recently gone on an extended hiatus." She continued.

Suddenly, the screens in the room dropped down, all of them displaying the same newscast. The lights dimmed as the screen un-paused.

"As the situation in Black Mesa is escalating," the Pyroar on screen was saying, "the fear arises that something may have happened to our hero, X."

The screen switched over to an Espeon, who was saying, "The public is outraged with the sudden disappearance of our masked hero, X. Citizens are saying that he was nothing more than some guy with a few skills, in it for the fame, and ducking out when it got too hot."

The screen once again switched over, this time to a Charizard and a man.

"So," the Charizard asked the man, holding the microphone in front of him, "as a concerned citizen of Vorund, as well as someone who was saved by X himself, what is your opinion on his recent absence?"

The man sighed, before answering, "I honestly don't know at this point. I want to believe in X, and I want to think that he's out there, preparing. I mean, the guy saved me, for Arceus's sake." The man stared at the camera, before finishing, "X, if you're out there watching, please, come back. We need you."

The screen switched once again, this time to an elderly man sitting in a newsroom.

"As the world tumbles deeper into chaos, the public has only two questions," he was saying, "where is X? And will we ever see the return of our unsung hero?"

The screens froze on his face, and the lights came on. As my eyes left the screens, I could have sworn that Arceus was staring directly at me, but she looked away, so I just shrugged it off.

"Now then," She said, "seeing as it now appears to be just us fighting the Organization, we must step up on our missions. So, we will now be doing double the missions as we were."

With that, Arceus left the room, with Anna close behind. I locked eyes with Shelby, and we nodded at each other. As everyone got up to leave, she came over to me. I managed to stand up on my own, and we resumed our previous position, and left the room. We immediately left the hall, heading for our secret location. When we reached it, Shelby sat me on the couch, before joining me.

"I have to go out again." I said simply.

"Shane, you can't." She retaliated. "You're way too injured."

"That doesn't matter." I replied.

She sighed, and said, "Why don't you just go to Celebi and ask her to heal you?"

"Because of all of the questions." I replied. "And you know what that'd lead to."

"Yeah, I know." She retorted. "But I also know that you are in no condition to go out again."

I sighed, and submitted, saying, "Yeah, I know. But I can't stay here forever."

* * *

I sat there, watching the moon rise, as snow fell on me. I looked down at the garden from my place on the roof of the Hall glumly. Don't even ask how I got up here, but there are now a fair amount of buster sword sized holes in one of the walls.

"Fuck, I hate this." I said, poking my broken leg sadly.

"Well, you could always get it fixed by one of our healers." A voice said behind me.

I spun around, frightened, and saw Arceus standing behind me.

"L-Lady Arceus." I stammered. "I'm sorry, I didn't see you there."

"It's quite alright, Shane." She said, sitting down next to me. "You seem rather perturbed. Would you like to share?"

I sighed, thinking, before venting, "It's just how life's been recently. I mean, I managed to get Darkrai to hate me, and then I fucked up the only thing that made me feel important. Now I just feel so useless, and this leg hasn't helped."

"Darkrai doesn't hate you, Shane." Arceus said, shocking me.

"She doesn't?" I asked.

"Of course not." Arceus replied. "On the contrary, she cares deeply for you. Why else would she save you from dying?"

"What?" I asked. "You know?"

"Of course I know." She replied. "I am, after all, Arceus. I know more than you think. Such as, I know that you and Shelby have been dating for quite a while now."

Worried, I asked, "How much else do you know?"

"Oh, not too much more." She replied offhandedly, calming me slightly. "But I do know that to truly get Darkrai back on your side, you will need to find some way to impress her, and show her that you truly are the best Champion."

"Well, I can't exactly do that with a fucked leg." I said. "That, and I don't even know how I would impress her."

"Well then, allow me to help." She replied.

She moved her hand over to my injured leg and touched it. Her hand began to glow, as did my leg, and I felt a sharp pain in my leg. After a second or two, she removed her hand, and the glowing went away.

"What did you do?" I asked, confused.

"I helped you." She replied. "Now, try moving it."

Slightly wary, I did as I was told. Surprisingly, there was no pain whatsoever, and I could move my leg flawlessly.

"You healed me?" I asked, awestruck.

"Good as new." She replied. "Which reminds me."

She reached over to my shoulder and repeated the process. She then did the same to my injured hand.

Pulling away, she said, "Remember, bullets hurt like hell."

I froze, and said, "Wait, what did you say?"

"Oh, nothing, nothing." She replied. "I just remembered seeing that you winced whenever you used that arm, as well as your hand, so I assumed that you may have pulled something in it."

"Oh."I replied, as she got up.

"As for impressing Darkrai, you'll have to do that on your own." She said, beginning to walk away. "But, I do believe that you have something to attend to now, correct?"

"Absolutely." I replied, nodding.

"Well then, I'd get going if I were you." She said. "After all, this world needs a hero, and every unsung hero should remain hidden."

With that, she disappeared in a flash.  _Can she teleport? More importantly, did she say what I think she said?_ I quickly shook my thoughts.  _It doesn't matter; I have a job to do._ I leapt from the roof, landing in the garden cleanly. I dashed through the Hall, reveling in my fixed body, and came to a skidding stop in front of my door. I entered to see that Shelby was still asleep on the bed, her chest rising and falling lightly with each breath.

I bent down and shook her, saying, "Hey, Shelby, wake up."

Her eyes fluttered open, and she looked around, confused.

Her eyes finally found me, and she asked, "Shane? What are you doing standing up?"

"Celebrating my fixed leg and shoulder." I replied, grinning.

"What?" She asked, shocked. She sat up, and asked, "How did you get healed?"

"A friend helped me." I replied. "But, more importantly, I can get back to being X tonight."

Shelby suddenly got rather sad, a small frown appearing on her face, and she said, "Yeah. Great. Now the world gets you back."

Saddened by her reaction, I suddenly remembered something that I had been planning, prior to my broken hand.

"Actually, I have a little surprise that I think that you'll like." I said, grinning at her.

She looked up at me, curiously.

* * *

"So, you ready?" I asked through my mask, as we stood in the alley next to the twenty story office building that we're about to raid.

"I guess so." The person next to me said, their face hidden by a mask similar to mine, this one with a Y on it, rather than an X. "I mean, this is new to me."

"You'll be fine." I reassured, wrapping my arms around the black figure comfortingly. "I believe in you."

She nodded, and said, "Alright then. Whenever E's ready."

"You hear that?" I asked E. "Is the feed hooked up?"

"Almost." Was the response. "Really though, I don't quite understand why you want to have a live stream of this going to every T.V channel."

"Because, we need to let the people know that I'm back." I replied.

After a few more seconds, I heard a, "Alright. We're good."

"Amazing." I replied. "You really are a fucking genius. So how do I start it?"

"I'll handle that." E replied. "All you have to remember is to do what you do best, and that the camera is right between your eyes."

"Shouldn't be too hard." I said, shrugging. "Now, let's go."

As we moved to the front door, Y asked, "So, what's the plan here?"

"The place is filled with Organization members." I replied. "But, we only need to top floor. Up there, they have two hostages, the leader of Kynnesgrove's two sons. So, we free them, get them out of Mesa, and take them to their parent's safe house."

"Sounds slightly difficult." Y said.

I shrugged, and said, "C'mon, we've done this before."

"Yes, but we had more people then." She replied. "That, and I had a weapon that I know how to use effectively." She pulled her MP5K from her back, it's strap around her neck, and said, "I mean, I've never even shot a gun."

"It's simple." I instructed. "Aim it at the bad guys, pull the trigger and they die. And don't worry about ammo; it functions just like my Deagles."

She nodded, and I kicked open the front door to the building. I immediately noticed a Tyranitar behind a desk, and I pulled out my pistols. Before he could react, I launched a round at him. The bullet his him in the head, killing him instantly.

"Elevator, now." I instructed.

We dashed over to the elevator and called it down. It was empty, so we entered it, hitting the twentieth floor button.

"E, start it." I commanded.

"On it." He replied. After a few seconds, he said, "We're live."

"Alright then." I began.

P.O.V Change: Arceus

I was startled as my door flew open, revealing a panting Mew.

"Yes?" I asked calmly.

"Arceus, I apologize for my entrance, but you must come see this." She said, between pants. "X is back."

"Really?" I asked.

"Yeah, he's apparently streaming his return." She replied. "Articuno noticed it while watching T.V, and we're all watching it in the meeting room. C'mon."

She dashed off without another word. I smiled lightly, as I followed her.

P.O.V Change: X

"So," I continued, "I know that a lot of you guys were worried that I don't actually give a fuck about you guys. Well, that's fucking absurd. I do this to help you guys, and for no other reason. I didn't ask for the fame, it came with the job." I sighed, and said, "Now, to explain my absence. I have been recruiting, and I now have some help."

I turned to face Y, and she nodded back at me.

As the elevator dinged, signaling our arrival at the twentieth floor, I said, "Now then, let's go."

As the elevator doors opened, E started the music on my phone, and  _Underdog_ by Motionless in White began to play. As we stepped out into a hallway, multiple men surrounded us, aiming their guns at us.

"Oh, a welcoming party." I commented. "How fun. Y?"

"Let's go." She replied.

We readied ourselves, before acting. Y dropped to her knees next to me, as I did a back flip over her. I spun in a circle in midair, launching off rounds, as Y did the same on the floor, not letting off of the trigger. As I landed, we stopped firing, and the bodies dropped, clearing the circle.

"Let's move." I said.

We took off running down the hall. As we went, two door opened in front of us, and a soldier stepped out of each. While Y stopped, I continued running at them. I dropped down and slid on my back at the legs of one of the men, knocking him down. As he dropped to me, I stopped his descent by shoving the barrel of one of my Deagles in his mouth, before pulling the trigger. As I did this, Y fired off a burst of lead, hitting the other soldier directly. As I glanced behind me, I saw a door open behind Y, and a soldier burst from it, dashing towards her. Acting quickly, I aimed my pistols between her legs and fired at his knee caps, dropping him to the ground. As he hit the floor, Y spun around, noticing him. She aimed at his face and fired off two rounds. Both found their targets, and he sunk to the floor. Y ran past me, grabbing my hand and pulling me up as she went. We continued sprinting down the corridor, and more doors opened up as we went. With three men on each side of the hall, we kept running. I reached the three on my side first, and I leapt onto the first one's chest. As he hit the floor, I stood on his chest, feeling a few assault rifle rounds fly past me. I quickly dispatched the other two on my side, just in time to watch Y mimic what I did previously.

I leaned down to the soldier that I was standing on and stared at his fear fill eyes, before aiming my guns at his head and asking, "Hostages. Where?"

"E-end of the hallway, and to the right. The door at the end of that hall. You can't miss it." He stammered out. "Please, don't kill me. I swear, I'll leave the-"

He didn't get a chance to finish, as I pulled the triggers on my guns. I leapt off of the body, and looked at Y.

"You heard him." I said.

She nodded at me, and we took off again. We made it to the room quickly, and I threw the door open. Inside, I saw five soldiers, two of which were holding a pair of young Shinx hostage.

"Release them." I demanded.

"I'd prefer not to." One of the soldiers said.

I nodded, and Y and I started firing. She took care of the three unoccupied soldiers, all of which had horrid aim, as they missed every single shot they fired at us, while I sent two accurate shots downrange, freeing the pair. They both stared at us in shock, tears in their eyes, as we rushed over to them, holstering our weapons as we went.

"We need to leave, now." Y said.

I suddenly heard a thunder of footsteps coming from the hall. Thinking quickly, I saw that the wall to our left was all windows, and there was a roof not too much shorter than the floor that we were currently on near it.

"Listen, you two will have to trust us, alright?" I addressed them. "This will be scary, but if you close your eyes than it will be over before you know it." They both nodded, and I crouched down, saying, "Alright, one of you climb on."

The larger of the two climbed on my back, and I watched Y do the same with the other one.

"Alright, now, close your eyes and hold on tight." I instructed. "No matter what, don't open them." I waited a few seconds, before asking, "Ready?"

"Ready." The two boys replied.

Y and I backed up a few steps, before I pulled one of my Deagles out again. I shot open the glass, before holstering my weapon. Y and I looked at each other and nodded, before taking off running at the broken window. We both leapt at the same time, and I could feel a small sense of weightlessness. We landed on the opposite roof and kept on running, going from roof to roof.

"E, shut off the feed and music, now." I commanded.

"On it." Was the reply.

As we continued running the music shut off, and we were given privacy again.

"So, where to?" Y asked me.

"There's a place that we can leap over the city wall up ahead, just keep going." I replied.

We continued running, leaving the sounds of sirens and helicopter blades behind us. We eventually reached our goal, a portion of the wall that was shorter than the others. We leapt onto the wall, before dropping down onto a roof that was just below it. We quickly got on the ground, before fleeing into the nearby forest. After a few more minutes, we stopped.

"Hey, kids, you can get off." I told them.

They slid off of our backs, landing on their feet. They opened their eyes and looked up at us, awestruck.

"Are you guys super heroes?" The smaller one asked, amazement in his voice.

I chuckled, and said, "No, not quite. But, we are the people that are bringing you back to your parents."

"You're taking us back to mommy and daddy?" The younger one asked.

I nodded, and they both wrapped what they could reach of us in a hug.

"Thank you so much." The older one said. "We thought that we would never see them again."

Y laughed, and said, "Well, you'll see them tonight. Now, c'mon, let's go."

The young Shinx let go of us, and we started walking through the trees, the kids glued to our sides. After about twenty minutes, the younger one started getting tired, so I picked him up and held him in my arms as he slept. It took us about thirty more minutes, before we reached our location. A small log cabin in the middle of a small clearing. I went up to the door and knocked.

A small panel on it opened up, and a pair of eyes looked out at me, as their owner said, "I'm sorry, but the owners of this house are on vacation in the Seadom Islands."

"I do hope that they are okay." I replied, knowing how to answer. "Last I heard, Hurricane Flynt just moved through, causing multiple tsunamis."

As I finished saying the confirmation phrase, the door was flung open, and I was greeted by a Luxray.

"X." He said, bringing me into a hug. "You've returned, and you brought our sons."

"Of course." I replied, as he released me. "I promised that I would."

His wife, a Sylveon, came up to stand next to him, and she saw her son in my arms.

"You truly did save them." She took the small Shinx from my arms, and said, "Thank you so much."

"All in a day's work." I said, as I was joined by Y and the other Shinx.

"Mommy." He said, running over to his mother.

"Come now, X." Their father said. "You wouldn't allow us to do anything but vocalize our thanks last time, but now you have done more than we ever could have asked of you. Please, there must be some way we can thank you."

I shook my head, and said, "No payment is need, Leonardo. I'm just happy to see a family reunited after spending months apart."

The Luxray's smile widened, and he said, "If you insist. I know how stubborn you can be with payment." He looked over at Y, and said, "I don't believe that we have met before. I am Leonardo, the former leader of Kynnesgrove."

"Y." She responded simply.

"Anyway, we must get going." I said, noticing the sun beginning to rise.

"Yes, of course." Leonardo replied. "Just remember, if you ever need help of any kind, we owe you a great debt."

I nodded, and we took off into the woods. When we were a fair distance away, we both dropped our return pads on the ground, and stepped on them. Once we were back home, we reset everything back to how it was and I returned Eve while Shelby went back to my room. When I entered my room, I saw the Flareon sitting on my bed, back in her normal clothes and her gear in her own chest under my bed.

"So, how was your first night?" I asked, beginning to take off my own gear.

"It was amazing." She replied gleefully. "I mean, we just helped reunite a family, and we get to go out and do more tomorrow night. I can't believe that we can help people this much now."

I chuckled, and said, "Yeah, now you know one of the reasons why I like this job so much. It feels amazing knowing that you're helping people so much."

"Yeah." She replied. After a few seconds, she asked me, "Hey, Shane?"

"Yeah?" I responded.

"So, tonight got me thinking." She started. "Do you think we could ever have kids?" I froze, shocked at the question, and she quickly covered her mouth, squeaking out, "Arceus, I'm so sorry, Shane. I don't know why I said that."

I just sat down next to her and kissed her on her forehead.

"Shelby, when all of this shit with the Organization is dealt with, I would love to start a family with you." I replied.

"Really?" She asked me, a hopeful tone in her voice. "Do you mean it?"

I chuckled, and said, "Of course. I love you, after all."

* * *

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, good? Bad? So, yeah, a nice fight scene, some fun plot development, and the Alphabet Assassins have a new member. What, you don't like my nickname for them? Well, too bad, because I do. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Also, as a nice little hint thingy, the next chapter will taste like one of two things, either copper or citrus, I'm not quite sure yet. So, I'll see you next time.


	10. I Love you so Much, Shelby

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, here is the next chapter in my Update Marathon. Next I'll be putting up a chapter to Living a Life of Almost Luxury, and then I can finally allow myself to sleep. Anyway, I really hope that you enjoy this chapter, because it centers around my favorite thing to write about. The wonderful romantic relationships that happen between my characters. Yeah, I just love writing them more than anything else. Well, on to the chapter.

 

* * *

 

**I Love you so Much, Shelby**

I woke up fairly early. I glanced over and saw that Shelby was still asleep, snuggled up to me. I sat up, shaking my head. _Well, I guess that today is the day. Hell, I don't even know if this day means anything anymore. I mean, fuck, I'm dead._ I got up, somehow keeping myself from waking up Shelby. I went over to my dresser and put on a shirt, before leaving my room. I went down the hall, heading for the cafeteria. I entered the room and saw that the only other person in it was Anna. I grabbed an orange from the counter, before sitting down across from Anna.

"Hey." I greeted her.

"Morning." She returned, yawning quietly, as she poked her eggs with her fork.

"Didn't sleep much?" I asked.

"No, not really." She replied. "I had to deal with Chelsea making noise all night."

"What was she doing all night that was so loud?" I asked.

The Lopunny sighed, before saying, "She was fucking masturbating."

"What?" I asked, shocked. "Why?"

"Well, from what I heard, it had something to do with a certain consonant." She replied.

I groaned, and said, "Holy shit, she takes that obsession way too far."

"Yeah, I can absolutely agree." Anna said. "She was moaning so fucking loud that I'm pretty sure that most of the fucking Hall heard her. I honestly don't know how you didn't."

I just shrugged, knowing exactly how. Shelby and I had went out on a mission last night, and we didn't return until, like, four in the morning. Which, seeing as it's only five, that means that I only slept for one hour.

"Just luck, I guess." I replied.

"Anyway, you seem rather down today." Anna began. "Any reason why?"

I sighed, and said, "I'm not quite sure if I want to share."

"Oh, c'mon." She pressed. "You can tell me. I won't let anyone know."

I sighed again, and said, "Well, today is my sixteenth birthday."

"What?" Anna asked. "Why would you want to hide that?"

"Because, only three people know, being Shelby, Darkrai, and you." I replied. "While I know that Shelby will want to find some way to celebrate, Darkrai and I are still against each other, and we both know what would happen if the others found out."

"Yeah, I guess." She agreed. "Although, look at it this way, your birthday is only one week before Christmas."

"Why should I give a fuck about that?" I asked, involuntarily grinding my teeth and clenching my empty hand. "I mean, I was homeless before becoming here and, prior to that, my mother was always drunk and abusing me, so she definitely didn't give me shit."

"Um, Shane, you okay?" Anna asked me.

"Perfectly fine." I responded. "Why?"

"Well, that's a rather deep thing to drop on someone that you aren't that close to." She answered. "And, y'know, you sounded rather angry and spiteful."

I just shrugged, and said, "I don't know. I mean, I may be pseudo-immortal, but, in your words, we are all human."

"Yeah, I guess." She agreed, as I started peeling my orange. "So, you and Shelby have any plans for today?"

"Not really." I replied. "I mean, I know that Shelby told me that she has something planned, but I really don't know what it is."

"Well, that is how birthday surprises work." Anna pointed out.

"Yeah, I know." I replied, taking a slice of orange and biting it in half.

"Well, I hope that you're ready for your surprise, because here she is." Anna said, looking over my shoulder.

Before I could turn around, a pair of arms wrapped themselves around my torso, and I was kissed on the cheek.

"Hey, babe." Shelby addressed me.

"Babe?" I inquired, as the Flareon sat down next to me. "That's new."

She shrugged, and said, "Yeah, I'm trying out some new nicknames. D'you like it?"

I shrugged, and said, "It's alright. No real issue."

"Well then, I think that it'll stick." She said. "So, you ready for your surprise?"

"Can I finish my orange first?" I asked, popping another slice into my mouth.

Shelby sighed, and said, "Oh, fine."

I quickly finished my orange, before being pulled towards the door by Shelby.

"See you later, Anna." I called out.

"Bye, have fun." The Lopunny replied.

"So, where are we going?" I asked Shelby, as she pulled me down the hallway.

"Just wait and see." She replied, pulling me outside.

She led the way through the woods, taking me deeper into the trees. After about five minutes, I recognized where she was taking me. Deciding that she probably knew what she was doing, I just kept silent. We eventually reached what I had known was the goal all along. Our secret cabin in the woods. She opened the door and led us inside, before closing the door behind us.

"Alright," I began, standing at the couch, "so, why are we here?"

She didn't answer, instead deciding to gently tackle me onto the couch, putting her head on my chest.

"Because I'm ready to give you your gift." She answered.

"Which is?" I inquired.

She planted a kiss on my lips, before moving next to my head and whispering, "Me."

I froze, shocked.

"What?" I asked. "Are you sure?"

"Of course." She replied, tugging on the collar of my shirt. "What, do you not want this to happen."

"Absolutely." I reassured her. "But, I just want to make sure that you're ready."

"Shane, not only am I beyond ready to take our relationship to the next level, but I've also been suffering for months." She replied. "So, it's pretty much a mutual gift."

"Alright then." I replied. "Well then, shall we begin?"

"Absolutely." She answered, a smile on her face.

She reached down and gripped the hem of my shirt. She began pulling it up, revealing my chest. When the cloth was completely off of my chest, I reached for the bottom of hers, as well. I gripped her shirt, before slowly pulling it up her torso. She lifted her arms up, allowing me to remove her shirt. I looked down at her uncovered torso, loving what I saw. Her stomach was flat to an extent, but it still had some slight muscle definition caused by her time as a Champion. Granted, her stomach was slightly difficult to see beyond her fairly large D-cup breasts, her nipples sticking out erect in the cold weather. I instinctively moved my hands over to cup her breasts, using my thumb and index finger on each hand to tweeze and play with her nipples. She let out a small gasp of pleasure, dropping down from her raised position as her hands lost their grip.

"Holy shit, Shane." She gasped out. "How did you know that that would feel so good?"

I shrugged, and said, "I just guessed, really."

She kissed my lips, and said, "Well, that was a very lucky guess. Now, how about we continue?"

"Agreed." I replied.

I then reached down to her jeans, finding the button and zipper. I unbuttoned her jeans, before gripping the zipper and pulled it down. She then kicked off her jeans, with some minute help from me. When her jeans were lying on the floor, I looked down to see her exposed crotch.

"Here, follow my lead." I requested.

Shelby nodded in response. I held her tightly, before rolling off of the couch, landing on the floor with her on the bottom.

"Sorry." I apologized. "But we don't have very much mobility up there."

She nodded, and said, "I understand."

I slowly began trailing kissed down the Flareon's body, making sure to pay extra attention to her perked up nipples. When I reached them, I ran my tongue across each one, before latching onto the right on with my teeth. As I tugged lightly on the nipple in my mouth, flicking it with my tongue constantly, I reached up and gripped her other nipple in my hand, before pinching and teasing the little nub. Shelby began letting out a constant stream of quiet gasps of pleasure, which strengthened and grew in volume each time that I gave her nipple a little nibble. After a small amount of time with my mouth on her right nipple, I swapped over, moving my hand up to her other nipple and repeating the process. After another small amount of time, I began moving down again, until I came to my goal. Her moist slit. I grazed my tongue across her outer lips, tasting her juices slightly. They had a definite taste to them, but I couldn't quite tell what it was. I then slowly dug my tongue into her slit, immediately being greeted by a nice heat, flicking it around inside, causing the adorable Flareon to moan loudly. I dug my wet appendage deeper into her cavern, licking her walls as I went. By now I could tell the taste clearly. It was a wonderful mixture of some kind of pepper, judging by the taste, Cayenne, combined with cinnamon and an unidentifiable spicy flavor. Her juices were spicy enough to slightly numb my tongue, but no more. As my tongue went deeper into the Flareon, assaulting her walls as it went, her moans kept intensifying, to the point where I was positive that they could be heard from outside. I began ghosting my hand around her slit, searching for a particular part of her genitalia. I finally found the little nub after a few seconds of searching. I immediately took it between my nails and lightly pinched her clitoris, causing her to explode in loud moans. Smiling around my tongue, I slowly brought my tongue out, teasing her with my speed and flicks, as well as the little pinches to her nub. When her tunnel was completely void of my tongue, I took the opportunity run my tongue over her slit at a teasingly slow speed. As I reached her small nub, I moved my hand away from it, before latching onto it and nibbling it slightly. This appeared to be just the right action, as she immediately let out the loudest moan so far, right as her slit started shooting out her delicious juices. I quickly moved my mouth to catch her juices in my mouth, savoring the spicy taste of each splash that was jettisoned out onto my tongue. Her orgasm lasted for almost thirty seconds, and I kept pressed to her slit the entire time. When she was finally done, I pulled away to see that she was panting. I moved up to her mouth, and gazed at her. As I did this, I felt some of her juices that were left in mouth dribble down onto my lips. The panting Flareon grabbed my chin, bringing us together into a kiss.

When we pulled apart, she asked, "Cinnamon?"

"Let's just say that you taste amazing." I replied.

She chuckled, and said, "Well, how about I see what you taste like?"

Without another word, she flipped us over to where she was on top, with me lying on my back. She moved down to my jeans, before unbuttoning and unzipping them. She gripped the waistband of my jeans, slowly pulling them down, revealing my semi-erect member. She just sat there, gawking at my exposed phallus, before ghosting her hands across my member. She slowly brought her head down to my length, before nervously sticking her tongue out. She took a nervous lick on my member, going from the halfway point up to the very tip, taking a second to run her tongue over the opening. After a few slow licks, she moved her tongue down to the very bottom of my length, before running her tongue to the tip, sending a few jolts of pleasure through my body. As I reached my full seven and a half inches, she tilted her head to the side, moving down my member. She put her mouth on a small amount of my member, before looking up at me with a cute look on her face. I chuckled lightly, seconds before she went back up to my head and wrapped her lips around it. I could feel her flick her tongue across my head, slowly running her wet appendage over my sensitive organ. She did this for a minute or so, each slow flick of her tongue sending minute jolts of pleasure through my body. She eventually moved on, though, as she slowly took in my whole shaft, allowing me to clearly feel when I went back into her throat. She began bobbing her head up and down on my length, taking on an antagonizing slow pace, teasing me with the constant small pleasure being sent through my body.  _Well, I guess that I do deserve this._ After a while of her teasing, she quickly shot her head down my length, causing me to gasp at the sudden pleasure. She then pulled up slowly, reaching down to play with my testicles as she did. I felt her lightly squeeze my genitals, just as she reached my head. She continued this tactic until I felt my stomach tighten. She could obviously tell that I was close by my groan of approval, so she gave me another light squeeze, before launching her head down my length. As soon as he lips touched my groin, I felt my release be set free. She pulled her mouth up to where she had only my head in her mouth, just as I started shooting out my seed. As I succumbed to the pleasure of my orgasm, I let out a prolonged groan. When I finally finished shooting my seed into her mouth, she released my head from her lips with a small popping sound. She moved up to my face, locking me in a kiss again. Our tongues immediately began fighting, swapping our spit, as well as what was left of my release. Curiously, my seed tasted fairly good, being a combination between a slightly sour flavor, as well as a flavor similar to chocolate, mixed with the obvious salty taste. We eventually pulled away, our lips connected by a thin string of our spit and my seed.

"Do you want to move on?" Shelby asked me.

I nodded, before flipping over again, to where she was under me. I lined myself up with her entrance, rubbing my head against her slit.

"Ready?" I asked.

The Flareon nodded, so I began slowly pushing into her tunnel. I was quickly shocked by the intense heat around my member, as well as the tightness of her virgin orifice. I continued pushing in, each millimeter moved causing Shelby to release a moan. I eventually reached a barrier, and I knew what it was immediately.

"Are you sure?" I asked. She nodded, and I said, "This will hurt some, but only for a short amount of time."

She nodded, and I backed myself up slightly. I pushed in swiftly, shattering her barrier and receiving the gift of her virginity. As I did this, she screamed, but I managed to muffle it by pressing my lips to hers in a passionate kiss. I stared into her slightly tears eyes, until she finally nodded her head. I nodded back, breaking our kiss, before slowly pulling out of her, causing her to moan in pleasure. I pulled out until just my head was in, before driving myself back into her warm tunnel. As I hilted inside of the beautiful Flareon, we both let out a loud gasp of pleasure. I continued doing this, building up speed with each thrust, until my hips were no more than a blur, slamming against her groin. I continued slamming into her, both of us moaning uncontrollably at the intense amount of pleasure that was shooting through us. After a few minutes, I felt her tunnel tighten even more, and I knew that she was close. Not too long after noticing this, I could feel myself getting nearer to my end. I lightly squeezed her wrist, letting her know how close I was. I looked at her expectantly, and she nodded, giving me permission. It only took a few more seconds, before I felt her walls tighten up and grip me like a flaming vice, causing me to be thrown over the edge. My body locked up as I hilted my length inside of her, shooting my seed deep into the Flareon under me. We stayed like this for multiple minutes, before our orgasms finally ceased. I collapsed onto the Flareon, both of us panting rapidly.

When we finally calmed down, I said, "I love you so much, Shelby."

"And I you, Shane." She replied, as I wrapped my arms around her, flipping to where she was lying ontop of me, my member still buried inside of her.

She reached up to the couch and grabbed the blanket that we kept up there, pulling it off to cover us, just as the cold of the winter finally began creeping over our bodies, sending chills down my spine. As the cloth covered our bodies, I pulled Shelby even tighter into our hug, locking my lips with hers in a kiss. We broke apart a while later, shortly before falling asleep in each other's arms.

* * *

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well guys, how was it? Please leave feedback. This is only my second lemon, the first being in The Half-blood Pokemorph and I didn't get any feedback there, so I would love some on here. I really want to know if I did well. Honestly, with my lemons I don't try to write just some random stupid smut, made for the sole purpose to give you something to pleasure yourself to. I write them to show the true romance that exists in a relationship, and just how much a pair of people can love each other, and care for each other. Anyway, I'll see you guys either in my other story, or in the next chapter. Bye.


	11. How About we Step it the Fuck Up?

** How About we Step it the Fuck Up? **

Shelby and I were sitting in the snowy forest, side by side, listening to the sounds of the Pokemon that call this place their home.

"Y'know," the Flareon began, "this place is really relaxing. I wish that we got to do this more."

"Yep." I agreed, using a stick to move around the logs in the small fire that she had created for warmth. "But, relaxation doesn't come with our job description, sadly."

At this, Shelby's phone began ringing, obviously wanting to support my point.

She sighed, pulling it out of her pocket, as she said, "Every damn time we start to enjoy just being around each other, this shit has to happen." She answered the call, greeting, "Hello, Darkrai." There was a pause, before, "I'll be right there."

As she pocketed her phone, I asked, "Work?"

"Yep." She answered. "We apparently have a meeting with Arceus about our recent missions."

"How long will it take?" I asked, already running through my plan in my head.

"I don't know." She replied, sighing. "It could take only a few minute, or it could take hours. See you at dinner?"

"Of course." I told her, as she stood up.

She bent down, planting a kiss on my lips, and said, "Love you."

"Love you, too." I replied, as she started to walk away.

As I watched her tail disappear through the trees, I continued sitting there, absentmindedly playing with the logs.  _Alright, one more time. I know that she doesn't have anything planned for today, so I should be able to find her somewhere, most likely in the garden Shouldn't be hard enough. I'll give her, say, an hour. Yep, sounds good._ I rose from my spot, put out the fire, and started towards the Hall. Upon reaching the garden, I noticed that the person whom I desire was nowhere to be found.  _Where the hell is that bitchy Arcanine._ Looking around, I did see a certain Meganium.  _She may know._ I went over to Maggie, hoping that I would get a legitimate answer, rather than some insult.

"Hey!" I called to her, as I approached.

She looked up from the book that she was reading and, upon seeing me, sighed, before saying, "What do you want, Shane?"

Shocked, I asked, "What did you just call me?"

"What?" She replied. "That is your name, isn't it?"

"Well, yeah," I answered, "but I didn't think that you actually remembered it."

She scoffed, and said, "Of course I remembered it."

"Then why did you always call me 'male' and 'trash' like the others?" I asked. She just shrugged, so I continued, "And what's with the sudden lack of blind hatred to me?"

She sighed, closing her book.

"Shane, it's possible to warm up to people over time, y'know." She told me. "Did I hate you originally? Absolutely, but people change. I could always go back to how I used to be, if you want me to."

"N-No." I reassured her. "I'm alright with this. It's… nice, really. I like having more than five or six people in here that don't hate me."

"Well, I'm not the only one that's getting a change in how we think." She informed me. "I mean, Jesse's started hating you less, then there's Ally, and even Shaymin and Mewtwo have started liking having you around, despite the fact that you don't actually go on missions."

"I honestly hadn't realized that Mewtwo actually hated me." I said. "Granted, we haven't exactly spent a large amount of time together, but still."

"Well, she did. Just not so much, anymore." Maggie told me. "So, what do you need?"

"I was wondering if you had seen Chelsea around." I told her.

"Chelsea?" She asked me, confused. "What do you want her for?"

"I want to speak to her about something." I replied, simply.

"Um, okay." She said, still confused. "Last I saw of her, she was eating lunch."

"Alright, thanks." I said, beginning to walk away.

"No problem." She called after me.

I was just about to enter the building, when a thought occurred to me.

"Hey, Maggie?" I started, turning around. She looked up from her reopened book, and I asked, "So, what made people start to like me?"

"Well, I can't speak for the others, but for me it was how you treated Shelby." She replied. My confusion was evidently showing on my face, as she explained, "You just treated her so perfectly; as if she was royalty. You were always so nice to her, going out of your way to try and make her happy, even while you were injured. And, well… it made me realize that not all males are bad."

I smiled at her, and said, "Thanks. That means a lot to me."

"Anytime." She replied, smiling back at me.

I turned, entering the Hall. I started for the cafeteria, hoping that I wouldn't find too many people in there. I entered the room to see that it was void of almost all life, save for Chelsea and her group of fucks, consisting of Jenna, Chelsea herself, and the new addition of Alexis, all of whom were sitting at a table together. I went over to their table and crouched down next to them, causing their conversation to stop.

"What the hell do you think you're doing this close to us, male?" Chelsea asked me, her usual spite and hatred dripping from her words.

"Oh, I just stopped by to say hi." I replied, taking on a friendly voice and a large smile.

"Why the fuck would we want you near us?" Jenna retorted.

I shrugged, and said, "Well, I thought that you guys could use some more friends, especially after the obvious exclusion of Maggie."

"Why the hell do you think that she was kicked out, you fuck?" Alexis asked.

I shrugged, and suggested, "She doesn't think that Dahvie Vanity is cute?"

The Arcanine took my bait, letting out a growl and coating her tail in an Iron Tail, before holding the piece of metal up to my throat threateningly.

"What's with the sudden hostility?" I asked.

"Shut the fuck up before I have to dirty my clothes with your blood, trash." She growled at me. "Now, piss off, before I kill you."

I stood up, chuckling, and sarcastically said, "Yeah, because you could kill me. Sure."

She shot up, getting in my face, and growled, "What was that, male?"

"What, getting a little scared now that someone is ready to challenge your reign of queen cunt?" I teased, glaring down at her.

"What the fuck did you just call me?" She asked.

"You heard me, bitch." I replied, growling deeply.

She sent a fist at me, but I easily caught it. Her other one came flying at me, as well, but it quickly met my palm, too. As I glared down at her again, I saw the same look of defiance and hatred that stayed there, except now it seemed more intense.

"How about we settle this like Champions, rather than grade school kids?" I suggested, releasing her hands.

She laughed, and mocked, "Do you truly think that you can beat me?"

I shrugged, and replied, "Maybe. But we'll never know if you don't accept my challenge."

"Alright." She huffed. "What are your terms?"

"Find four people and meet me in the training room." I told her. "You have one hour."

As I went to walk away, she asked me, "Any four people?"

"Sure, I don't give a fuck." I replied, leaving the room.

* * *

I stepped into the training room, an explosion of noise greeting me. As I entered, I looked around, seeing that the stands were full of the others. Looking across at my enemies, I smirked as my predictions were confirmed. Standing on the opposite side of the room was Chelsea, her halberd in hand; the Eons, their twin cutlasses ready, Entei, her dual scimitars already coated in fire, and bringing up the end of the line, unsurprisingly, stood Moltres, her real weapons at the ready. Apparently, the sword that I had seen her with previously was only the weapon that she used on stealth missions, as her real weapons didn't really fit the bill properly. Granted, if you had long coils of flaming chains wrapping up your arms, you wouldn't really be able to sneak efficiently either, would you? As I was about to step onto the field, I was suddenly hit by someone, almost knocking me over. I looked at the assailant to see that it was Articuno, and that my right arm had her hands around it.

"Articuno, what are you doing?" I asked.

"Stopping you from getting murdered." She answered. "Honestly, are you so willing to die that you would fight them? Chelsea and the fucking Legends?"

I just shrugged, and said, "Dying doesn't hurt too much, really." She look at me with a confused look on her face, so I added, "And, besides, you can't stop me. I've already set my mind to it."

"I may not be able to stop you from breaking the rules, no." She replied. "But Arceus can, and Mew's already getting her."

I just smirked, telling her, "Good."

* * *

P.O.V Change: Arceus

I held my hand up, stopping Darkrai in the middle of her sentence about Shelby's mission progress, as I heard footsteps rush down the hall. All three of our heads turned to the door as it shot open, revealing a panting Mew in her human form.

"Hello Mew." I calmly greeted her. "Out for an afternoon jog?"

"Arceus, you have to come quick." She urged. "It's Shane."

"What?" Shelby and Darkrai asked simultaneously. "What happened?"

"He's about to have a fight." Mew replied. "A five versus one."

"With who?" Darkrai asked her, shocked.

"He's against Chelsea, Moltres, Entei, and the Eons." The pink haired girl replied.

"What?" Darkrai said, leaping from her chair. "He'll be slaughtered!"

With that, she ran out of the room, Shelby at her heels, almost knocking Mew over. I calmly got up from my seat, before heading for the door.

"Why are you so calm?" Mew asked me, outraged. "He's not only breaking the rules, but he's also condemning himself!"

"Oh, I'm sure that it will be entertaining, don't worry." I replied, as we started down the hall. "Besides, I already know who will be the victor. It's quite obvious, really."

She just scowled at me, before rushing off down the hall.  _So, you're finally showing your true colors. I must say, young Champion, it has taken you quite a long time._

* * *

P.O.V Change: Shane

The door to the training room burst open just as I started to enter the field. I turned around to see Darkrai, Shelby, and Mew rush in, followed by a calm Arceus.

"Shane, what the hell do you think you're doing?" Darkrai asked me, her voice raised, allowing her tone of worry to creep in clearly.

"Well, if I can stop being interrupted, then I would be about to fight." I told her.

"No, you aren't." The reaper replied. "You'll die!"

I just shrugged, and said, "It wouldn't be the first time."

She sighed in annoyance, and turned to Arceus, telling the anthromorphic white stag, "Aren't you going to stop him? He's breaking the rules!"

The Alpha Pokemorph just shrugged, replying, "Who am I to stand in the way of a good fight? And, besides, if you would just compare the skill levels, it's quite obvious who will win."

Darkrai rolled her eyes, turning back to me.

"Shane, don't do this. You'll be slaughtered." She begged me.

"Will you take me back as your Champion?" I calmly asked.

"What?" She replied, both confused and shocked. "Shane, this isn't the time to discuss this!"

"Then we can talk about it after the fight." I told her.

She sighed again, and said, "Damn it." She turned to Shelby and added, "You're his friend. You talk him out of it."

The Flareon froze for a second, before bringing herself back to reality. She came over to me calmly.

"Shane, can you beat them?" She asked me.

I chuckled, and joked, "What, do you not have faith in me?"

She grabbed my shoulders, surprising me, and said, "You know that I believe in you, no matter what you do. But, that wasn't my question. Do you believe in yourself?"

I nodded slowly, replying, "Yes, I believe that I can beat them."

She nodded to me, before bringing me into a deep kiss. We held it for multiple seconds, sounds of shocked gasps mixing with a few whistles. When we pulled apart, we stared into each other's eyes.

"Give 'em hell." Shelby told me.

I nodded, and, she ran over to the sidelines. I saw that Darkrai was staring at me, mouth agape, so I just smiled back, before heading onto my side of the field.

"So, are you finally done giving your last will and testament?" Chelsea taunted me, from across the arena.

"Oh? That was what I was doing?" I replied. "I hadn't realized it." The Arcanine just scoffed, as I called out, "ESTR?"

The girl appeared next to me, answering, "Yes, Warrior?"

"Warrior?" I asked her.

"It is the title given to the best Champion here." She explained. "The one who truly fits what the Champions are."

"Um, okay." I said, confused. "Anyway, can we begin?"

She nodded, and replied, "Of course, Shane."

She disappeared, and I watched as a leader board popped up on the wall. On the left was my ranking, showing off a proud nothing, with Chelsea's ranking to the right, with a large "vs" in between. After a few seconds, rankings for the Legends on Chelsea's side appeared under her own.

"Begin." I heard ESTR's voice ring out.

I locked eyes with my opponents, all of which had their weapon's drawn, while I merely stood unarmed. I just nodded at the group, keeping still. Within a few seconds, I was faced with two flaming chains flying my way.  _Let's go!_ Working quickly, I formed a small Dark Pulse on the bottom of my feet. I jumped up lightly, detonating the Pulses, causing me to fly high into the air, narrowly avoiding the Moltres's attack. I did a back flip, landing a foot or so away perfectly.

As all eyes went to me, shocked, I called, "ESTR!" She appeared next to me, and I said, "How about a nice fight tune?"

"Of course." She replied, smiling. "What one?"

I thought for a second, before telling her, "How about we be royalty for a little bit?"

"Of course." She replied.

She disappeared again. After a few seconds,  _King for a Day_ by Pierce the Veil and Kellin Quinn started blasting out of the walls. I smirked, before signaling for opponents to attack me. They complied, Chelsea leading the way, her halberd raised, with the Eons following closely. As they drew nearer, I formed another Pulse on my right foot, getting ready. Chelsea reached me quickly, swinging her weapon down sharply. I reached my hands out and caught it, holding it by the sides of the blade.

"Too slow." I taunted her shocked face.

I moved my hands down to the handle of the weapon, before swinging myself around. My right foot made contact with Chelsea's stomach, and I exploded the Pulse on impact. The force of the attack sent her flying back into the Eons, knocking them down, as her halberd slipped from her hands and into mine. I spun the weapon around, before twirling in a circle and sending the halberd flying towards Moltres. The phoenix froze, the weapon getting closer. Just before she was hit, the weapon disappeared, just as I had thought. I turned to see that Chelsea and the Eons were back on their feet, weapons ready. I chuckled at the scene, before being cut short by a flaming blade flying past my head. I looked over to see that Entei was rushing towards me, only one sword in her hand. She reached me, stabbing for my stomach, but I caught the blade, the tip of it piercing my hand. I gasped in pain as I watched the tip of the weapon sink into my palm.

I glared at the dog, before growling, "Now you've made me mad, mutt."

I charged a Dark Pulse in my free hand, before bringing the fist down onto Entei, activating the attack at the same time. She let go of the weapon as she was launched to the ground. She hit the floor with enough force to actually skip back into the air slightly, where I hit her with a Pulse Kick, sending her flying away. I gripped the handle of the scimitar, before yanking it from my wound. As I did so, blood began seeping out of the hole, but I ignored it. I threw the weapon away, growling lightly.

I glared at my opponents, before saying, "How about we step it the fuck up?"

I dropped my injured right hand to my side, calling out Strife. My large weapon formed quickly, shining brightly as it materialized, before I felt it cause a minute amount of pain on the wound. Ignoring the discomfort, I rushed forward, Strife trailing behind me. The others all grouped together, readying their weapons. I coated Strife in a black aura, signaling that it was now imbued with a Dark Pulse, and swung upwards upon reaching them. The attack exploded as the blade hit, causing all of us to be thrown back. I picked myself up, and saw that the entire other half of the arena was covered in a dark smoke. I trained my eyes onto the smoke, searching for anyone. Suddenly, from the blackness, came a long blue cutlass, slicing through the air, aimed at me. I didn't have enough time to move, as I felt the blade enter my shoulder, causing cheers to explode from the crowd, with a few gasps mixed in. I gasped in pain, resisting dropping to my knees, as the weapon pierced my left shoulder, going all of the way through. As I felt blood seep down my arm, the smoke cleared, revealing my opponents standing there, triumphant looks on their faces.

"Well, I guess that that settles it." Latios taunted, smirking.

I just pulled the blade from my body, gripping it in my hand tightly. I took off running, ignoring the urge to fall, the sword stuck out straight. Before anyone could react, I reached Latios, plunging the blade into her chest. As the crowd shouted in surprise, I retracted the blade, shoving it into her stomach.

"Not even fucking close." I whispered into the blue Eons ear.

I was answered by a few coughs of blood, as her body dropped. I stood up straight, to see that all eyes were trained onto me. Hell, even Arceus looked shocked.

I locked eyes with Latias and said, "C'mon, it's not like that's the first time I've killed that bitch. All I did was add two new scars."

Her expression turned from one of shock to one of anger, and she charged at me, her own swords ready. I sidestepped, sticking out my foot. Latias tripped over my leg, falling to the ground. As she fell, I readied a Pulse Punch, before sending it flying into her chest, sending her flying back. She hit the ground a few feet away, coughing roughly. I spun around, facing the three other shocked faces.

"So, are we gonna fucking continue, or do I just win?" I taunted, summoning Strife.

They all growled at me, before rushing me simultaneously. I just smirked, lashing out with Strife. I hit all of them simultaneously, knocking them off of their feet. I suddenly felt a weight land on my back, before red and white arms began clawing at me. I dropped Strife, before grabbing the arms midswing. I sent Latias flying off of my back, into a wall, where she dropped to the floor, unconscious.  _Two down. Three more._

"So, shall we continue?" I taunted my enemies, as they regained their footing.

I was answered by Entei rushing towards me, her swords aimed at my chest. Ignoring the pain rushing through my body, and the blood pouring from my wounds, I dodged her attack, Pulsing up my hands and feet. I hit her with a Pulse Punch in the back, before following it up with another. She spun around, only to have a Pulse Kick be delivered directly to her face. She went flying across the room, and I went chasing after her. I slowed slightly as I reached her. I detonated a Dark Pulse right next to her torso, the force causing her launch into the air, flailing. I hit her in the back with a Pulse Punch, causing her to raise even more. I backed up slightly, before running towards Entei and launching myself into the air with my Dark Pulses. I spun in a circle, charging an exceptionally powerful Dark Pulse in my hand, before slamming my fist into her chest. She shot to the floor, hitting it with enough force to create a large crater. I landed next to her, allowing me to confirm her inability to fight. I stepped out of the crater, glaring at duo that was left. Moltres immediately shot her chains out at me, and they wrapped themselves around my arms, causing me to grit my teeth against the pain as they hit my shoulders.

I just smirked at her, asking, "Did you really think that that would work?"

I used my hands to grip the chains, before pulling them towards me. Moltres tried to resist, but she inevitably failed, and I ripped the chains from her arms, leaving them coiled around mine. Before she had the chance to call them back, I launched a chain out, ignoring the burning sensation coating my arms, and wrapped it around the phoenix's neck. She let out a choked gasp, as I took off running to a nearby wall. When I reached it, I tugged on the chain sharply, causing Moltres to fly over to me.

I knelt down next to her, and asked, "Do you submit?"

She looked up at me defiantly and shook her head, deciding her fate. I quickly wrapped the other chain around her neck, before placing a Dark Pulse charged foot on the wall. Concentrating on my movements, speed, and balance, I detonated the Pulse, using the explosive force to send me up the wall. I continued the process with my other foot, alternating each step, until I was sprinting up the wall, dragging the choking Moltres behind me. As we neared the domed roof, I sent a large Shadow Ball flying to the ceiling, making a large hole in it, exposing the room to sunlight. Just before I hit the hole, I spawned Strife, stabbing him into the wall in front of me, horizontally. I leapt onto the blade, whipping the chains perfectly, to where they unraveled from Moltres's neck, sending her flying out of the hole and into the sky. I charged up a Pulse Jump, before releasing it, launching myself up after her. I caught her by the neck, sending her crashing to the roof. I landed next to her, the distance from the crowd inside blocking out the sound, to where all I heard was the sound of the forest Pokemon and Moltres's heavy breathing as she gasped for air. And, of course, the sound of my fur and flesh slowly burning, but I'm trying to block that out.

"So," I began, leaning down, "do I win yet? Are you willing to just allow this to stop?"

Moltres coughed multiple times, before replying, "Never, trash!"

"Then just remember," I told her, "you chose this."

I spawned Strife in my hand, before stabbing it into the phoenix's stomach. She let out a loud yell of pain, but she continued trying to lash out at me and free herself. I charged a Dark Pulse on my feet, readying myself for what I was about to do.

"I'm sorry." I told her. "I genuinely am. But you brought this upon yourself."

I detonated the attacks, causing the roof to explode under us. We went plummeting to the ground, Strife imbedded in Moltre's stomach, my feet on her chest, and her chains still wrapped around my arms. The crowd went silent as we fell, the only sound being the music playing and the fire on the chains. We hit the floor a few seconds later, just as the song hit the last few seconds, and I had to brace myself to keep my knees from buckling. I looked down at the motionless Legend under me, knowing that within a few hours she'd be back alive, possibly having learned nothing from this encounter. This thought in my mind, I pulled Strife from her stomach, stepping off of her chest. I fixed my eyes on the shocked Chelsea, beginning to head over to her, dragging Strife behind me, leaving a bloody trail. As I got closer to the Arcanine, I saw her shocked and defiant expression change to a scared one, one of fear. When I got close to her, she dropped her weapons, going to her knees, shielding her face with her hands.

"I'm sorry." She begged me, as I stood in front of her. "I'm sorry for what I've called you. You win, okay? You win. Just please don't kill me."

Instead of attacking, I dropped Strife, as well as Moltres's chains, before kneeling down in front of Chelsea. I moved her hands out of the way, before cupping her chin in my hand and moving her face to look at me.

"I'm not going to hurt you, Chelsea." I told her.

"R-Really?" She asked me, the fear beginning to leave her eyes. "But I thought that you wanted revenge."

I sighed, shaking my head, and replied, "This was never about revenge. It takes a hell of a lot to make me truly want someone dead and, despite what you've done to me, I don't want you going anywhere. All I want is a little respect."

"Respect?" She asked.

"Yes." I told her. "Chelsea, we're equals. All of us are. You are my comrade, my ally, and a potential friend. All I want is for you to act like that. No more insults, no more bigotry, and no more bullying. All I want is for us to get along, and for us to work together to save this hell-hole we call Earth. But that can't be accomplished if we aren't all working together. That was the main point of this fight. So, can we stop with the hate? Can we work together, like we are meant to?"

She seemed slightly hesitant, before nodding, replying, "Yes. We can work together."

I nodded back, replying, "Thank you."

I stood up, grabbed Strife, and started over to the silent group by the door. Instead of stopping, I just went past them, dragging Strife behind me, and out the door. I turned down the hallway, heading for the infirmary. After a few seconds, I heard footsteps rush up behind me, before I was joined by Mew, Darkrai, and Shelby. They stayed silent as we continued down the hall. I turned into the infirmary, already heading for one of the medicine drawers. I opened it, taking out a bottle of painkillers. I popped open the bottle, knocked a few of the tablets into my palm, and downed them. I turned around, to see that the others had their eyes on me.

"Yes?" I asked them.

"Did you not just see what happened back there?" Mew asked me, shocked.

"Well, not technically." I replied. "Y'know, on account of me being the one doing it."

"Shane, you kicked ass." Shelby told me. "Major ass."

I just shrugged, as Darkrai asked, "Shane, why didn't you ever tell us about this? About how good you are?"

"I just didn't." I replied. "I wanted to keep it a secret. So, does this mean that you take me back as your Champion?"

"Is that what this was all about?" Darkrai asked me. "About getting me to accept you again?"

"To an extent, yes." I replied. "I wasn't lying back there, though."

Darkrai wrapped me in a hug, causing me to wince in pain. She tried to pull back, but I returned the hug, pulling her to my chest.

"Relax." I told her. "It's a maintainable pain."

We broke apart, and she looked up at me.

"So, does this mean that we're good?" I asked.

Darkrai chuckled, before replying, "Of course. Just don't go almost killing yourself again."

I returned the laugh, and said, "No promises."

Just then, the door opened, revealing Arceus.

"I'm sorry to interrupt," she opened, "but may I speak with Shane alone for a minute."

"Of course." Darkrai replied, nodding.

Darkrai and Mew left the room, and Arceus came in.

Shelby pulled me into a light hug, and said, "I'll be outside."

"Could you get me something to drink, please?" I asked my girlfriend. "Being partially coated in fire and currently slowly bleeding out really makes you thirsty."

She chuckled, and replied, "Of course. I'm honestly slightly impressed by how well you're keeping your cool while bleeding on yourself."

I just shrugged, and said, "C'mon, you know that it's not the first time."

"Yeah, I guess." She agreed, pulling away. "I'll be back."

I nodded in response, as she left the room. Arceus closed the door behind Shelby, before turning to face me.

"Well, that was interesting." She opened.

"Yeah, I guess that it was." I agreed. "It went a little bit awry in the beginning, hence why I'm currently barely holding in screams of pain, but I still won."

"Indeed you did." She said. "and, not only that, but you seem to have changed a few opinions. Granted, you had to temporarily kill three Legends to do so, but it got your point across."

"Three?" I asked, confused.

She chuckled lightly, before explaining, "You didn't really believe that Entei took that beating and just fell asleep, did you? Despite the strong attitude she likes to show, she isn't exactly the most powerful in a battle. One of the most charismatic, yes, but the two don't correlate, unfortunately."

"Yeah, I suppose." I agreed. "So, am I getting in trouble for staging an illegal battle?"

"Of course not, Shane." She reassured me. "Besides, even if I had intended to punish you, you have already done it to yourself."

I looked down at my body, completely understanding what she meant. The wounds in my hand and my shoulder were both bleeding, with my hand now beginning to clot, my shirt was fairly scorched, and my arms were red and burnt, the lower half being completely void of fur.

I chuckled, and said, "Yeah, I am pretty fucked up. Any chance that you could help with this?"

"I can fix the burns and the wounds, but I'm afraid that you'll have to wear a jacket for a while." She told me, walking over to me. "But, it's not like you haven't been wearing one for a while, anyway."

I laughed lightly, as she hovered her hands over my body, and I replied, "Very funny. But, I will need a new one. I can't exactly wear that outfit around her, can I?"

"No, I suppose not." She agreed, coating her hands in a white light. "Don't worry, I'll find you something. Come see me after dinner."

I felt a slight tingling sensation as my body was coated in the white light, blinding me. After a few seconds, I could see again. I looked at my body, examining the healing job. My wounds were completely healed, and the reddened skin of my arms had turned to a pale white.

"Holy shit, I need a tan." I joked.

Arceus laughed, before agreeing, "Yes, it does seem so."

She then walked up to me, before wrapping me into a hug, surprising me.

"I'm proud of you, Shane." She told me. "I really am."

"Th-thanks." I replied, returning the hug.

We stayed like that for a few minutes, before we broke apart.

"Well, I guess that I'll see you after dinner." Arceus told me, heading for the door. "Goodbye."

"Right." I replied.

She opened the door, before leaving. As I watched her turn out the door, I thought that I saw a small twinkle in her eye.  _Is she… crying?_

* * *

P.O.V Change: Arceus

I closed the door behind me, before heading down the hallway. I started for my room, silently thanking the universe for the halls being empty. I eventually reached my room, which I entered, locking the door behind me. I went over to my bed, collapsing on it, letting out an exasperated sigh of defeat. As I lay there, I felt my tears begin to form, before rolling down my face.  _I still can't believe that I did that to you, my son. I left you with those people, condemning you. If only I had known what was going to happen to you, I would have prevented it. I never would have let you leave. But what could I do? The others hated males._ I chuckled lightly.  _But, here you are, changing their opinions. I honestly can't believe it. My own son, here, a Champion, changing the opinions that have existed for generations._ I smiled widely at the thought.  _I'm so proud of you. If only you knew what you truly mean to me._


	12. Clean Up, Aisle Fuck You!

**Clean Up, Aisle Fuck You!**

I left my room, having to keep my arms stiff at my sides.  _Arceus, I hate this shit. It's so fucking itchy!_ I looked down at the source of my anger and annoyance, glaring. My left sleeve had been replaced by a new one, and it was now joined by one on my left arm, minus the shoulder pad. Normally, this would be fine. Normally. But in normal circumstances, I have fur on my arms, preventing the rough fabric from touching my bare flesh. Which currently itches like a son of a bitch.  _Fuck, I can't wait until I get my fur back!_ Putting the thought to the back of my mind, I started for the cafeteria, the previously downed painkillers now starting to take effect.  _As happy as I am that I can be healed with ease, I really wish that they could prevent the pain, as well._ I sighed, continuing down the hall.  _Granted, it's been two days, so it's not like I can complain too much._ I reached the cafeteria, and entered it. It was fairly empty, as one would expect, with it being five in the morning. The only other person in there was Mew, who was sitting at a table, her back to me, with her head resting in the air, held up by her bent arm. As I started for her, I picked up the scent of fresh brewed coffee. I got to her front, where I saw that she was actually asleep, her coffee sitting in front of her, untouched and still steaming. I tapped the bipedal pink cat's shoulder, causing her to shrug slightly in her sleep. I tapped her again, and was greeted in the same way. I sighed, realizing what I would have to do.

I lightly shook her, quietly saying, "Hey, Mew. Wake up." She didn't stir, so I raised my voice slightly, repeating, "C'mon, Mew. You need to wake up."

She did nothing, once again, so I made up my mind. I went behind the Legend, crouching down slightly. I moved her sideways, to where her legs had joined the rest of her body up on the bench. I put one arm under her legs and the other behind her back, to where she was resting on it. I picked her up, before leaving the room and starting for her room. I found it with ease, as it was labeled with her name. I entered, to be stunned slightly. Due to her bubbly personality, as well as her fur color, I would have assumed that her room would be rather light and pink. Yeah, I was wrong. The walls were painted black, with the floor the same white marble as the rest of the Hall. Her room, one that was much larger than the Champion's rooms, was fairly empty, only having a wardrobe, a chest of drawers, and a four post bed, the curtains and sheets all black.  _Doesn't seem like it'd fit her, really. But who am I to argue?_ Ejecting the thought from my mind, I went over to the bed. I moved the curtains out of the way, before laying the feline Legend down. I threw her blanket over her, before starting for the door. I reached for the knob and began turning it, before I heard something that made me stop.  _I-Is something vibrating?_ I honed my senses in on the sound, paying maximum attention to it.  _Yep, definitely vibrations._ I turned around, trying to find the source of the sound. I followed the noise to what appeared to be the source: her wardrobe.  _Odd._ I opened the doors slowly. Inside, I saw nothing other than her normal Legend outfit of all pink. But the sound got louder. I moved the clothes over, confused, until I noticed something. A small hole, no larger than my index finger, was in the wood back. I reached for it, doing the obvious thing and sticking my finger in it. As soon as I did, I felt a sharp prick in my finger, causing me to gasp, retracting my finger. Examining the injured digit, I noticed some blood at the tip.  _What the fuck?_ Upon realizing this, I put the tip of my finger in my mouth, allowing the blood to refrain from getting on any of her clothes. My concentration on my confusion was broken, as I noticed something that I had previously not seen. A small screen, just above the hole. On the little screen, I saw a picture of myself in my Champion's garb, with my name below it, and the word "Processing" under it. Both confused and intrigued, I continued staring at the small screen, until the "Processing" switched to "Approved". Suddenly, the screen sunk back, to be covered by a sliding panel of wood. My confusion only strengthened as the wall pushed back slightly, before sliding to the left.

"What the fuck?" I whispered, shocked.

My curiosity getting the better of me, I entered the frame, putting me at the top of a small flight of concrete steps, with a red light coming from the foot. Taking the most rational advancement, I started down the stairs, the vibrating getting louder with each step.  _I swear to Arceus, if someone named Aslan is in here, someone's dying._ I reached the foot of the steps, letting me out at in a room about the size of my bedroom, lit only with a bare red bulb, casting very little light around the room. I reached to my left, feeling for the wall in the minute light, before I felt a switch. I flipped it, flooding the room in light from the rows of fluorescent tubes in the ceiling. I gazed around the room, shocked.  _Holy shit. Where the hell is Hit-Girl and Big Daddy?_ The room looked fucking amazing.  _How the fuck does she hide a war room?_ The first thing that I had noticed was the giant back wall of amazing. The entire thing had a large rack of weapons on it, featuring everything from swords and axes, to Scar assault rifles and M1014 shotguns. Looking around again, I noticed a large desk on the left wall, covered in computer monitors, my count coming up to five. On the right side was another desk, this one littered with random parts of electronics, as well as a few drones of different kinds. Above the desk hung a large map of what appeared to be the world, with small colored thumb tacks sticking out of it. Noticing the source of the vibrating, I went over to the desk on the right, grabbing Mew's phone from it. I hit the "Snooze" button, shutting off her alarm.  _How the fuck could that help her if it was on vibrate?_ Placing her phone back on the desk, I took the chance to examine the room more, starting with the desk. All of the electronic parts appeared to be torn from computers or something of the sort, with most of them appearing to be in mint condition. I picked up one of the completed drones, intrigued. It appeared to be a quadrotor drone, signaled by the miniature helicopter rotors on each corner. I examined the small drone closely, noting the two small guns on it, one appearing to be a belt fed machine gun, ammo absent, obviously, and the other looking to be a small grenade launched, only able to hold one or two shots, by my guess. Carefully sitting the small robot down, I looked at the map, confirming my suspicions of its content. I saw that she had labeled multiple places on it, multiple hundreds, really. Some were marked with a red tack, others a blue one, and the rest marked with a black one. I continued examining the map, beginning to realize a trend.  _Wait a minute. I've liberated some of these places._  I continued scanning the map, realizing the significance of the tacks.

I chuckled, before saying to myself, "Damn, Mew. Nice planning."

 _So, the blue tacks are places liberated by the Champions. The black ones have been liberated by myself, or should I say, X. And the red ones… they must be ones still controlled by the Organization._  Moving on from the impressive map, making a mental note to check out some of the red tacks later on, I went to the computers. They all appeared to be off, providing me no source to pay my attention to, so I moved on to the main source of my intrigue. The weapon rack.

I audibly gasped, whispering, "Holy shit."

On the wall hung many weapons, most of them enough to give a weapon specialist one hell of a wet dream. On the melee side of things were your standard ones, such as straight swords, halberds, and daggers, as well as some more interesting ones. I grabbed one in particular, my jaw dropping as I reached for it. It was a large black buster sword, similar to Strife, but with a few… modifications. At the tip of the blade, right in the center of it, was a small hole, about the size of a sniper round. At where the blade reached the handle was a small scope on the edge of the blade. I held the weapon up, looking through the scope, when I felt a small trigger under my index finger. I turned the sword, looking at the trigger. Just above it, on the blade, was a small opening, one that appeared to be large enough to fit some sort of sniper clip in it, most likely one of a Barrett fifty caliber.  _Holy shit, this is so sexy!_ Keeping the weapon in hand, I continued looking at the weapons, recognizing most of the guns, as well as pretty much all of the melee weapons. After a few minutes, I heard a throat clear behind me, causing me to freeze in place. I spun around to see that Mew was standing at the foot of the stairs, her arms crossed over her chest and her foot tapping the ground.

"Oh, um… Mew." I greeted her nervously. "H-How are you doing? Have a nice nap?"

She sighed, before replying, "What the fuck are you doing down here, Shane?"

"Um, well, you fell asleep in the cafeteria." I began. "And, y'know, I decided to bring you back. And, well, I heard a noise, so I investigated. I accidentally found this place…"

I trailed off at the end, rubbing the back of my head nervously.

"Shane, why are you holding Fair?" She asked me.

"Fair?" I asked, confused. Realizing what she meant, I said, "Oh, this sword?"

She sighed again, walking over to me.

She grabbed Fair from my hands, replying, "Yes, Shane. The sword."

"Sorry." I apologized. "He just seemed interesting. Piqued my interest, really."

"It's fine." She reassured me. "After all, he is your weapon."

_Huh?_

"What?" I replied, confused.

"You heard me." She replied. "He's yours. I was just finishing all of the modifications."

"What do you mean?" I asked her. "I thought that Strife is mine."

"He is, as well." She told me. "But I had been wanting to thank you for helping me around here, so I decided to make you a second buster. And after watching your performance the other day, I decided that I should go ahead and finish it up. I just completed it shortly before I went to drink some coffee."

"What?" I asked. "Y-You mean that you made Fair for me?"

"Yep." She replied. "Thought that it'd be pretty cool for you to have two weapons, and I figured that you'd be able to put them to good use."

"Wow." I said, shocked. "Um, thanks."

"No problem." She answered, heading over to the desk. "All I need to do is install the clip, and your good to go."

She sat Fair up on the desk, before beginning to work on him. As she did this, I decided to attempt a conversation.

"So, what is this place?" I asked her, continuing to examine the multitude of weapons.

"My laboratory." She replied. "I like to make shit, and I wanted a peaceful and quiet place to do it."

"Does Arceus know about it?" I continued.

"Yep, but only her." Mew told me. "Well, and ESTR, of course. After all, where do you think that I made her?"

"Good point." I replied.

"Alright, I'm done." Mew said, bringing my eyes from the weapon rack.

I turned to her, barely catching Fair as he flew to my hands. I flipped him over, seeing the now added clip.

"Infinite ammo?" I asked.

"Yep." She replied. "Wanna go try him out?"

I chuckled, answering, "Oh, hell yeah."

Mew smiled at me, and said, "Let's go, then."

We left Mew's lab, the door closing behind us. We left her room, heading for the training room.

"So," I started, "does Fair work like Strife? Can I call him to me whenever?"

"Of course." She replied. "What kind of a Champion weapon would he be if you couldn't?"

I shrugged, agreeing, "Yeah, I guess that you're right."

We reached the training room, the lights coming on as we entered them. I tossed Fair to my left hand, spawning Strife in my right.

"Yo, ESTR!" I called. "You up?"

The blue girl appeared next to me, before yawning quietly.

"Yeah, I'm up." She replied. "What's up?" She then noticed Fair in my hand, and said, "Oh, is he finally done?"

"Yep." Mew replied, nodding to ESTR. "Finished just an hour or so ago. Thought that Shane could take him for a spin."

The blue girl grinned, saying, "Oh, this'll be fun."

I chuckled, and told her, "Yeah, I thought so, too." I started for the center of the room, calling back to her, "So, can you start up the four on one fight sequence?"

"Of course." ESTR replied. "What skill level?"

I thought for a second, before replying, "Four, please. I'd go for five, but I don't want to fight the hardest ones this early in the morning. Still somewhat tired."

"Alright." She replied, before disappearing.

Mew chuckled, before commenting, "I see that you discovered all that ESTR has to offer. Can't say that I'm surprised, though."

I just nodded to her, as four blue humanoid figures appeared in the room with us, standing still, each in a different cardinal direction. They were all armed, two with short swords, one with a small battle axe, and the last one with a broad sword, gripped in both hands.

"Can you give three of them a shield?" I asked.

"Absolutely." Was the reply, echoing from the walls.

In a matter of seconds, a small buckler appeared in the hands of the fighters with one handed weapons. ESTR reappeared on the sidelines with Mew shortly after.

"Ready?" She asked me, as the timer appeared on the wall.

"Let's go." I replied.

She nodded, before calling out, "Begin!"

At her words, my simulation opponents converged on me, bucklers up, weapons ready. I let them get within a foot or so, before acting.  _Go!_ I stabbed Strife into the floor, leaping onto his handle, before using the added height to jump over my enemies. I landed in a skid, both weapons in hand. I spun around to face the holograms, and saw that they were already rushing for me. I coated my feet in Dark Pulses, before Pulse Strafing to the right, allowing me to avoid them with ease.

"Hey, ESTR!" I called out.

"Yes?" She replied.

"Y'know, something seems slightly off about this fight." I told her.

I heard her and Mew chuckled, before ESTR suggested, "Music?"

"Yep." I answered, as the hologram fighters rushed for me again.

"What do you want?" ESTR asked me, as I Pulse Strafed again.

"Surprise me." I replied.

I saw ESTR disappear out of the corner of my eye, as a short sword came slashing at my face. I brought up Strife, blocking the attack, before stabbing Fair down into the floor, blocking an axe attack. I leapt back, just as I heard  _Switchback_ by Celldweller start up.

"How's that?" I heard ESTR ask, as she reappeared next to Mew.

I chuckled, before replying, "You read my mind, kiddo."

As I landed on the floor, all of my opponents turned to me, locking blank eyes with me.

I chuckled again, before saying, "Now for the fun to start."

The simulation fighters nodded to me, as if they were agreeing. The two with short swords rushed me, bucklers up, blades extended. I quickly used a Pulse Jump, flying backwards. As I flew through the air, I aimed Fair at the fighter on the left.  _Let's see just how badass this modification is._ I pulled the trigger, causing an explosive gunshot to ring out. The bullet shot through the air, going straight through the buckler and into the hologram's abdomen, sending it flying to the ground, tumbling away.

"Holy shit!" I yelled in shock, my exclamation being shared by Mew and ESTR.

"I didn't know that it was that powerful!" Mew called out.

"Has no fucking kick, either." I called back, landing.

The other fighter reached me, and I ducked under its attack, lashing Strife out at its feet. My opponent leapt into the air, dodging my attack. I looked up at it, to be met by a blade flying towards my face. I hit the floor, rolling out of the way of the attack, but just barely. I wasted no time in regaining my footing, leaping into the air, landing back on my feet. I glared at my opponents, watching as the battle axe wielder bent down, helping its wounded comrade up. When my enemies had reformed their formation, they all stared at me, before rushing me all at once.  _Fuck._ They all reached me simultaneously, bring their weapons down at me. I brought both weapons up in front of me, barely blocking the attacks. The force of the hits caused me to stagger slightly, pushing me back some, but I held the crossed blades up, preventing the weapons from hitting me.  _These fucks are way too coordinated to be on four!_

"ESTR, are you sure that they're on fucking four?" I asked, fighting to keep myself safe.

"I think that I may have put it on five on accident." She replied. "I'm sorry. Do you want me to fix it?"

I contemplated this for a second, before answering, "No, this is fine. More of a challenge."

Thinking quickly on how to get out of my current situation, I came up with a plan.  _Fuck, this is risky. It's my best shot, though._ I charged my feet with Dark Pulses, as I felt my block beginning to fail. I steadied my breathing focusing on my next move. I felt my block slip again, informing me of the urgent need to act.  _Now!_ I held the block, leaping into the air. I kicked out at the center point of the crossed blades, detonating the Double Pulse Kick as I did. The force sent all of us flying back, and almost sent Fair and Strife out of my hands. I landed on my back, sliding for a foot or so. I groaned loudly, before picking myself up. I looked over, to see that the long swordsman was up, as well. We locked eyes, squinting. He began rushing to me, prepared to stab me, from across the room.

I pointed towards him with Strife, Fair at my side, and taunted, "I'll slice your eyelids so you can watch the end!"

The fighter continued charging for me. Coming up with a plan quickly, I readied a Pulse Jump. I detonated it just before the fighter reached me, launching myself into the air. I did a barrel roll in midair, stabbing Strife into my opponent, before using the force to sling him off of the blade, and into the air. I landed on my feet, before aiming Fair at the airborn enemy.

"Now, go to sleep!" I yelled, before pulling the trigger.

The shot fired off, hitting my opponent in the chest. The force of the shot sent the form flying into a wall, where it broke apart, showering the floor in a blue powder.

I laughed loudly, before shouting out, "Cleanup, aisle fuck you!"

I heard a laugh from the sidelines, followed by Mew asking, "You're really enjoying this, aren't you?"

"Fighting's fun, so long as you're not killing!" I replied, not bother to look her way.

I spun around, focusing on the other fighters, who were just now back on their feet. The axe wielder wasted no time in charging for me, with its sword bearing comrades following closely. I stabbed out with Strife, plunging the blade into the axe wielder's abdomen, impaling it on it. I then tilted Strife up, lifting my stuck opponent into the air, before slicing out with Fair. Both swordsmen dodged the attack, though, merely stepping back to do so. I dropped Strife's blade down again, to see that the impaled hologram was still struggling. I charged a Dark Pulse on my foot, before putting it on my enemy's chest. I kicked into it, detonating the attack at the same time, sending the blue form flying backwards, tumbling into its allies, sending the trio to the floor. Within a few seconds, though, all three of them were on their feet again.

I chuckled, before asking, "You fuckers just don't give up, do you?"

I was answered by an axe being thrown at my head, which I barely dodged.

Glaring at the thrower, I added, "So, that's a no, right?"

The figure rushed me, barehanded.

I chuckled again, before saying, "Alright, let's make this fair."

I dismissed Fair and Strife, ready for a hand to hand fight. So, it only makes sense that I would be surprised when the axe suddenly reappeared in the fighter's hand, just before it was swung down at me.

"Woah!" I yelled, shocked, lashing out to grab the assailant's arm.

I stopped the attack, before hitting the hologram's stomach with a Pulse Punch, launching it back, and causing it to drop the axe into my free hand. I chucked the axe after its owner, who was hit by the weapon, causing it to stick in him for a few seconds, before that fighter joined its comrade as a pile of blue powder on the floor.  _Alright, now I'm just getting tired of this. Let's end it._ No sooner had my mind refocused on the remaining opponents, then had they began their assault. They both came running towards me, ready to slash. Thinking quickly, I stabbed both Strife and Fair into the floor at an angle, keeping the handles in my grip. Without even attempting to stop, both of my enemies stepped on the edge of the blades simultaneously. Quickly discharging a Dark Pulse in each hand, I used the explosive force to send the handles of my swords down, causing the blades to shoot from the floor, sending the hologram warriors into the air. I aimed Fair at the fighter on the left as they flew through the air, my finger resting on the trigger.

"One, two, fuck you!" I sang out, laughing madly, while pulling the trigger twice.

Both shots made contact, ripping through the binary flesh, but the fighter remained intact.

"Three, four, die some more!" I continued, repeating the process.

This time, the rounds meant the end of my electronic adversary, leaving only one left.  _Speaking of which._ I turned in the direction that the second fighter flew off in, just in time to watch it land on its feet. It started for me, but I was ready. I repeated the flinging act again, the hologram once again falling for it, and sent it into the air, straight up this time. Quickly deciding my plan, I looked up, before sending Strife and Fair flying upwards, both sticking into my opponent simultaneously. The force of the attacks sent the hologram flying to the ceiling, where it turned into blue powder, leaving nothing but the twin busters stuck in the ceiling. I spun around quickly, as I heard applause. I looked to the sidelines, seeing that Darkrai, Shelby, and Arceus had all joined Mew and ESTR, and the small crowd was applauding me. I smiled, as I started for them, spawning Strife and Fair in my hands. I brought the twin busters up, to where they were resting on my shoulders, as the song ended and I reached the group. I was immediately greeted by a hug from Shelby, almost knocking me off of my feet.

"Nice show." She told me, giggling.

"Thanks." I replied, despawning my weapons and hugging her back. "I had fun doing it."

She smiled at me, and said, "Just remind me to not touch your salt."

I chuckled in response, replying, "Alright. I'll make sure that you don't touch it."

As we let go of each other, Mew came up to us, a broad grin plastered to her face.

"So, do you like him?" She asked me.

"Oh, hell yeah." I answered, chuckling. "Handles like a dream, and makes a perfect twin to Strife."

"That was what I was going for." The pink cat informed me, chuckling slightly.

We were joined by Arceus, ESTR, and Darkrai, all of whom were smiling.

"That was awesome, Shane." Darkrai told me. "I still can't understand why the hell you hid that amount of skill."

I shrugged, and replied, "As I said, to keep up appearances. That, and I figured that it may cause more spite towards me if I was actually a pretty good fighter."

Darkrai chuckled, before agreeing, "Yeah, good point. I guess that it was a smart idea to wait for the others to warm up to you first."

I shrugged again, and said, "Well, that was actually just coincidental. I mostly just got tired of them. Well, and I missed you."

Darkrai wrapped me in a hug, replying, "I missed you too, Shane."

"Hey, I want a hug, too." Shelby said, wrapping her arms around me.

"Group hug!" I heard Mew call, before she joined in, with ESTR doing so, as well, despite her lack of being solid.

As we hugged, I noticed that we were missing someone. I broke the mass of arms apart momentarily, looking at the white equine, as she hadn't moved.

"C'mon, Arceus." I told her. "You can join as well."

She just shook her head, replying, "No, it's fine. I don't want to ruin the moment."

I sighed, and ordered, "Arceus, get your ass over here and join the hug, or I will kick your ass."

She opened her mouth, presumably to argue, but she closed it as I glared at her. She sighed, before coming over to us, joining in on the hug. We stayed like this for a minute or so, before breaking apart.

"See, that wasn't so bad, was it?" I asked Arceus.

She chuckled, before replying, "No, I guess not."

I was about to speak, when I was stopped by a rather loud growling noise, coming from a particular pink cat.

We all looked at her, and she shrugged, saying, "What? Can't a girl get hungry?"

We all burst out laughing, as Mew just stood there, staring at us.

When we finally stopped, I suggested, "C'mon, Mew. How about we go and grab some breakfast?"

The feline Legend smiled widely, answering, "I'd like that. I'd like that a lot."

I chuckled, as we started for the door. As we reached it, I realized that ESTR and Arceus weren't following us.

I turned around, seeing that they hadn't moved, and called to them, "Aren't you guys coming? Just because you don't eat, ESTR, doesn't mean that you can't come with."

"We'll catch up." Arceus replied, nodding to me.

I nodded back, as we left the room.

* * *

P.O.V Change: Arceus

I sighed as the door closed, leaving myself and ESTR alone. My head drooped to the floor, a few tears forming in my eyes.

"Are you alright, Lady Arceus?" ESTR asked me.

I sighed, before replying, "No, ESTR. I'm afraid not."

She gave me a small hug, asking, "You hate it, don't you?"

"Yes. I do." I told her. "And it hurts so much."

"You could always tell him." The blue girl suggested.

I shook my head, countering, "No. That can't happen. It'd most likely confuse him. Probably even anger him. I could never have him hate me. I'd rather live a lie, than be hated by my own son."

"As much as I don't agree with that, I guess that it is your choice." ESTR said. "And I can't do anything about it. Just remember, I'm always here for you."

I sniffled slightly trying to hold back the rest of my tears, as I replied, "Thank you, ESTR. You really are a good friend."

"And you're a good mother. I promise you that." She told me. "Now, how about we go join the others?"

I nodded solemnly, wiping away my tears. We started for the door, my mind wandering.

* * *

P.O.V Change: Shane

I rested my head on Shelby's shoulder as she sat on my lap in the meeting room. To my right was Darkrai, like always, and the others were slowly filing in, the room already about half full.

"So, any idea what this meeting is about?" I asked.

"Nope." Darkrai replied. "None of us do, really."

"Have there been any missions that we need to know about?" Shelby asked.

"Not since before Shane's fight." The reaper replied.

I sighed, before saying, "Then what the fuck could this be about?"

"Like I said, we don't know." Darkrai replied. "It could be anything."

The three of us sat there in silence as the room filled up, until everyone was there, save for Arceus. Even Anna was here.

"Yo, Anna!" I called, getting her attention.

I nodded my head, motioning for the Lopunny to come over. She complied, heading to stand next to our seats.

"Yeah?" She said, reaching us.

"You have any idea what this is about?" I inquired.

She shook her head, replying, "Nope. I didn't even know about a meeting until I got the text."

"Then what the hell is going on?" Darkrai asked. "Arceus normally tells someone what the meeting is about. Have there been any movements from the Organization?"

"Nope." I replied. "It's been quiet for about a week now."

Anna was about to say something, when Arceus entered, causing the room to go silent, the only sound her being her footsteps as she approached the center of the room.

She clasped her hands behind her back, before beginning, "Good afternoon. I would like to begin by thanking all of you for joining us here for such an impromptu meeting. So, I imagine that we are all curious as to the purpose of this meeting, correct?"

There were a few noises in agreement around the room, and Arceus nodded in response.

"Well, allow me to enlighten you." She continued. She turned to the doorway, before saying, "Zac, if you would."

Anna, Darkrai, Shelby and I all looked at each other, the looks in the girls' eyes telling me that we were all thinking the same thing.  _Zac? As in, a guy?_ Our attention was redirected to the doorway as someone entered the room, going to stand with Arceus.  _I guess that this is Zack._ The Zoroark stood next to Arceus, his posture set perfectly, obviously trying to impress. His clothes fit his species, really. A plain black t-shirt, a pair of plain black jeans, and black sneakers with crimson laces. His hair, though. That stuck out for a Zoroark. Its length appeared to be average for a morph, reaching just below his shoulders, but instead of the standard crimson base, his hair was an ice white, ending with the standard black tips. He appeared to be about the height of Shelby, and his age looked to be about fourteen or fifteen.

He remained still and silent, so Arcues nudged him, urging, "Go on, Zack. Introduce yourself."

The teen nodded, saying, "I'm Zack."

I could barely hold back a laugh at the Zoroark's obvious nervousness.

Articuno was the first to speak up, asking, "Not to be rude, but, what is he doing here, Arceus?"

Arceus nodded at the bird, replying, "I'm glad that you asked that. Well, we all know that we are in constant need of new Champions, and we most likely will be until we have defeated the Organization. So, Zack here has chosen to join the ranks."

Unlike my introduction, the room remained deathly quiet.

"Well, whose Champion shall he be?" Articuno asked.

Before Arceus could answer, Entei blurted out, "And if you think that I'd take a piece of filth like that as my Champion, then you're sadly mistaken."

 _Oh. Stupid mutt didn't learn anything._ Her outburst was met by a glare from both myself and Arceus.

"Relax, Entei." Arceus told her, her disgust at the reaction obvious in her voice. "I would never force a bigot such as yourself to train someone to train someone that you hate so blindly."

The retort sent Entei's eyes wide, as well as most of the room's.  _Damn. That's new._

"Well, who's Champion is he, then?" Mew, one of the few in the room to keep her composure, asked.

Arceus nodded to her, before replying, "Shane's."

My breath caught in my throat as all eyes shot to me.

"W-What?" I choked out, shocked.


	13. Bring on the Fanfare! Grab the Confetti Cannon!

** Bring on the Fanfare. Grab the Confetti Cannon **

I just sat there, frozen, as the eyes burned into me.  _I have a fucking Champion now? But I'm still no more than a Champion! What the actual fuck?_

"Shane, do you have any objections to this?" Arceus asked me, breaking me from my slight trance.

I brought myself to reality, to reply, "No. It's fine."

The white legend nodded, before saying, "Very well then. Shane, if you would follow me, please." She turned to the door without waiting for a reply, before adding, "Oh, Dialga, you too."

 _Shit, Dialga? What is she needed for?_ Without another word, Arceus left the room, with Zack stuttering slightly before following her. I looked across the room to where the blue dragon sat, clad in her unusual Legend garb of a blue jacket, a blue t-shirt, and blue jeans, next to her champion, a Lucario by the name of Lukie. Without even so much of a glance at me, Dialga rose, before starting for the door. Deciding to follow up, I left my chair, before joining her as we left the room. The two of us started through the Hall, going to Arceus's room, neither of us speaking.  _Shit, I've never really had any interactions with Dialga! Does she hate me? Will she try to kill me while we're walking?_

I was broken from my thoughts by the blue dragon answering my unspoken questions with, "I don't hate you, Shane. I feel that you should know that."

Shocked, I asked, "How did you know that I was wondering that?"

The Legend chuckled, before replying, "I didn't. I mean, I can't read minds, but, due to your Dark typing, that'd be useless anyway. I just assumed that that was why you hadn't spoken to me, during this short time that we've been walking, or before this day."

"Oh." I said. "Well, yeah, I was curious. Thanks, I guess."

"Of course." She replied. "Truthfully, I never hated you. I was merely uninterested, up until that fight. Then you piqued my interest, seeing as you fight as well as you do."

"So, you don't hate males?" I asked her. "Like, not at all?"

"Of course not." She answered. "Really, we're all the same."

"Indeed." I agreed. Deciding to change the topic, I asked, "So, now that I've spoken to you slightly, I'm curious. You're rather eloquent with your speech, much more than most of the Champions and some of the Legends, yet you dress in standard street gear, rather than the dresses or more flashy and nice looking attire that most Legends dress in. Why is it that you are obviously so intelligent, yet you dress like some random teen?"

"Well, first, allow me to thank you for the compliment, and direct it back to you, as well." She replied. "You have a much more vast vocabulary than most others here, and it feels fairly nice to be able to speak normally with you. To your question, the easiest way to reply is that I like it. It's comfortable, I can dress and undress quickly, and it's easy to maneuver in." She stopped talking for a second, before adding, "Not to mention, I've grown a rather strong adoration for blue combat boots, and they'd look quite odd with a dress."

I chuckled, agreeing, "Yeah, they would. I have to agree with that."

As I finished my sentence, we reached Arceus's room, or so I presume. I had never been to hers before, so I was letting Dialga lead the way.

The Legend next to me knocked on the door, and I heard a reply of, "Come in."

I opened the door, holding it open for Dialga, allowing her to enter first. She did so with a courteous nod, and I followed. As I stepped over the threshold, I noticed that the room looked pretty much the same as Mew's, with white being the main colour, rather than pink. In the center of the room stood Arceus and Zack, the Zoroark still appearing rather nervous.  _Kid appears to be rather eager to impress, but somewhat shaky around the Legends, as well as groups. Maybe we could try and fix that._ Dialga and I fully entered the room, shutting the door behind us, and we stood next to each other, facing the white Legend and the newest Champion.  _Or, my Champion, really. Probably sounds less like an asshole. Although, Zack may be the best one to use._

Arceus turned to Zack, asking, "Zack, would you kindly step out of the room for a few moments?"

The Zoroark jumped slightly at being addressed, before nodding, quietly replying, "Of course, Lady Arceus."

Zack walked past Dialga and I, his eyes on his feet, to the door. I heard it open behind us, before closing shortly after, signaling his departure. When he had left, Arceus fixed her eyes on us.

"Thank you for coming to see me." She told us.

Dialga and I both replied with a nod.

"Now, I know that this must all be rather shocking and, in your case, Shane, overwhelming." She continued. "Which is one of the reasons that I have Dialga in here." She turned to face Dialga specifically, before saying, "Dialga, you are the most skilled Legend here. While your Champion may not be the strongest, she is the most well rounded, and that has helped her more so than Chelsea's fighting has ever helped her. Not only that, but you were also the first Legend to ever receive a Champion. Which is why I am asking you personally to oversee Zack's training."

Dialga faltered slightly, before replying, "I will gladly accept the position, should you tell me what all this entails."

"Of course, my dear friend." Arceus agreed, nodding. "You shall watch over Shane as he trains Zack. However, you shall not interfere with the training. You may merely give Shane suggestions on how best to go about something, and what could possibly help in this task. You will also watch over any missions that Shane takes Zack on, until you feel that the two can accomplish a task without you overseeing them."

Dialga nodded, replying, "Of course. I accept the position."

Arceus returned the nod, before facing me and beginning, "Shane, I know that this must be quite odd, correct?" I merely nodded in response, so she continued, "And I apologize for doing this so suddenly, but we need more Champions, and he appeared to be promising."

"What, may I ask, brought on the sudden urgency to retrieve him without giving me a forewarning?" I asked.

Arceus smiled lightly at me, replying, "He is one of many that has become a fan of the so-called 'Alphabet Assassins', and that was about to lead to his downfall. He became inspired by the pair, specifically their leader, and has since tried to assist in the cause, as well. He was in the process of defending others that opposed the Organization, when he was about to be shot. So, I came in and rescued them all, before bringing him here."

I nodded back, stunned by her response, asking, "So, what all does training him entail?"

"All of the normal things, of course." She responded. "You must teach him to fight more, you shall take him on missions, and be his mentor. But, this does not exempt you from being a Champion yourself, despite some other Champions already giving you the same respect that they show Legends, with Zack no doubt included in that group. You will still have to go on missions with Darkrai, but you may choose to bring him with you, should you feel that he's ready enough. But, as I stated, you will have your own missions, with Dialga overseeing them. She may choose when you are ready to go with him without her, but that is all. You still lead them, and you get to choose who goes with you. On a mission, there can be no more than five members, and no less than two. Got it?"

I nodded in response.

"Good." Arceus told me. "If anything else comes up, you may ask either myself or Dialga. Although, I doubt that Darkrai would be opposed to helping you, as well."

I nodded, asking, "Is that all?"

Arceus nodded in response, saying, "Yes. Dialga, if you wouldn't mind, I would like you to stay here with me, so that we may discuss your new task, and so that Shane and Zack can have some time alone get acquainted."

The draconic Legend nodded, replying, "Of course." Dialga turned to me, adding, "Shane, if you wouldn't mind, I would like a full report of any training you happen to accomplish. Speak to me at dinner."

With that, I nodded to them both, before going for the door.

I was stopped, however, by Arceus saying, "Oh, and, Shane?" I turned around to face her, and she said, "He doesn't have a weapon of his own yet. I felt that you should choose it." I was about to leave again, when she added, "And, please, don't let him become the third quite yet. He's in no way ready."

I nodded in return, catching the confused look on Dialga's face, before opening the door. I stepped out, closing the door behind me. I looked to my right, to see that Zack was sitting on the floor, his head in his hands. I went up to my Champion and tapped him on the shoulder. He looked up at me, his eyes meeting mine. As he realized who tapped him, he leapt up, standing up straight. Before he could speak, however, I dipped my head to signal for him to follow me. He nodded in response, and I set off to the main door of the Hall, with Zack following closely behind me. We left the hall, stepping out into the snowy yard, and I led him through the trees, going to a specific clearing that Shelby and I always went to. When we got there, I dropped to the ground, sitting cross-legged, but Zack remained standing.

"Sit." I told him, motioning across from me.

The Zoroark nodded eagerly, saying, "Of course, sir."

I chuckled lightly, as Zack dropped to the ground across from me, in the same position as me.

"Er, or should I call you Lord Shane, since the Legends have Lady in front of their names, and you're technically my Legend?" He asked me.

I sighed quietly, telling him, "Neither. You should cut that formal shit and just call me by my name." He appeared to flinch slightly at my words, most likely shocked that his mentor would use language such as mine, but I continued anyway, "And, besides, most Legends don't give a fuck whether or not you call them Lady. Some do, but most really don't. So, I'm Shane, and just Shane. Got it?"

Zack nodded, replying, "Of course, Shane."

I smiled at him, saying, "Much better. So, how about we start getting acquainted by asking each other some questions about each other, alright?" Zack nodded, so I continued, "Alright, I'll start. So, Zack, what's your full birth name?"

"Zack Shino Feirth." He replied. After a few more seconds, he asked, "So, is it my turn to ask now?"

I nodded, replying, "Yep. Go ahead."

He appeared to think for a few seconds, before asking, "Who's your Legend?"

"That would be the fabled Reaper of Souls, Darkrai." I replied. I took a second to come up with my own question, before speaking, "So, seeing as I don't really get to talk to many people that aren't Champions or Legends nowadays, I'm curious as to how much the general population knows about this thing that we have going here."

"Not much, really." The Zoroark replied. "Truthfully, nothing is known more than some people claim to have seen Legends. Honestly, I thought that it was all just some people wanting to get their own little fifteen seconds of fame during this shitty oppression from the Organization." I nodded, so he asked, "Where are you from?"

"The heart of this hell, Black Mesa." I told him. "Every day, I was 'blessed' with the sight of the Organization's headquarters, The Rook, as I woke up." He nodded, and I added, "Well, I got to see the tallest building in the city, Black Watch Tower, as well." I thought for a second, before asking, "What about you? Where are you from?"

"Chronos." He replied. "Named after our big ass clock tower. You ever been?"

I thought back, remembering all of my X missions, before replying, "Yeah, once or twice. Pretty fun place."

Zack laughed, telling me, "Then you must have gone somewhere that I didn't. That place is boring as fuck, and one of the most oppressed places in the world."

"Indeed it is." I agreed. "I mean, I've been to some places that are just like the Organization never took over. I mean, nightclubs blasting music until dawn, teenagers being normal teenagers. And then you go to Chronos or Mesa, and the most that people are allowed to own, in the line of businesses, are fucking restaurants. And even then, only if you pay egregious amounts of cash to keep them."

As I said this, my mind flicked over to Stella, and Ben.  _I must go check on them soon. It's been too long since I've made sure that they're doing well._

Continuing our current conversation, Zack asked me, "So, what brought you to become a Champion?"

I froze momentarily, somewhat shocked by the question.  _Should I tell him? Oh, fuck it. If he's going to be my Champion, then he should know._

I took a deep breath, before starting, "Well, you are going to be my Champion, so you should know. That, and you seem pretty trustworthy." I looked him in the eye, and simply said, "I am dead."

He just looked at me, silent. After a few seconds, he started laughing lightly, causing me to deadpan.

"Nice one." He told me, through his laughter. "I almost believed you."

I sighed, before saying, "Well, it's generally advised that you believe the truth."

At this, he immediately stopped laughing, to ask me, "Wait, you actually are dead?" I nodded, and his expression quickly changed to one of disbelief, as he rushed out, "I'm so sorry. I thought that you were joking. I hadn't meant to offend you."

I just waved him off, replying, "It's fine. Honestly, if you had told me that you are actually dead, I probably would have reacted exactly the same."

Zack nodded, his hesitance obvious in his movements.

After a few seconds of silence, Zack asked me, "Shane? Do you mind if I ask you a question?"

I sighed, replying, "You want to know how it happened, don't you?"

The Zoroarks eyes got slightly wide at my correct guess, before nodding, saying, "Yes, if it's not too much trouble. I understand if it hurts too much, though."

I nodded, reassuring him, "No, I'll tell you. It's only natural to be curious, and it doesn't really hurt. Truthfully, it was the best thing to happen to me." I sighed, before answering his question, "Well, ever since I was a child, I've hated my life. I never knew my father, and I had a drunk and abusive mother. So, after paying my own way through school, I ran away. I lived on the streets for years, until one day earlier this year I ran across a woman about to be raped. Her name was Diana. I saved her, and she took me to lunch as a thank you. Later that day, I decided that asphalt looked extremely soft, especially from the top of the Watch. So, after making a nice meal of the ground, I woke up in the infirmary of the Hall. And now I'm here."

My Champion just sat there in stunned silence, before finally commenting, "Wow. You were very casual about that."

I just shrugged, replying, "Why not? It's just a fact. I'm dead. Yay. Bring on the fanfare. Grab the confetti cannon."

Zack just looked at me oddly, replying, "Alright then."

I chuckled lightly, before pulling out my phone and checking the time.

I dropped it back into my pocket, telling the Zoroark, "Alright, so it's almost time for dinner, so if you have any more questions, go ahead and ask."

Zack nodded, before asking, "So, when I was sitting outside of Arceus's room, a group of the others passed me. One of them, an Arcanine, noticed me, and talked to me for a few seconds. She mentioned something about me being lucky that you're training me. What did she mean by that?"

I chuckled, before replying, "So, met Chelsea, Moltres's Champion, have you? A week or so ago, I would have told you to never talk to her, but it appears that recent events have changed her view, as well as some of the others, on males." Zack looked at me, a confused expression on his face, so I explained, "Well, you already know that all other Champions and all Legends are females, right?" He nodded, so I continued, "Well, most of them hate males, and if they don't, they most likely just disregard us. Others are different. Mew, Arceus, Darkrai, Dialga. They are different. Anna, Arceus's Lopunny Champion, and Shelby, Entei's Flareon Champion and my girlfriend. Those two are different."

"So, what changed some opinions?" Zack asked me.

"I did." I told him. "Recently, I challenged Entei, Moltres, Latias, Latios, and Chelsea to five on one fight. I won. I ended up killing Entei, Moltres, and Latios, and that appeared to have made some opinion adjustments."

"You killed them?" Zack asked, shocked.

"Yep." I replied, nodding. "But, as they are Legends, they just needed to wait a couple of hours and they were as good as new, with only a few new scars. I mean, that was the second time that I killed Latios."

Zack continued looking at me, shocked, before shaking himself to ask, "Alright, one last question. Have you ever worked with X? I heard stories from concentration camp escapees about how they were helped by people with amazing skills and weapons, and a few have mentioned seeing X with that group."

I chuckled lightly, replying, "Right. Arceus told me that you're a fan of him."

The Zoroark looked down at his feet, before sheepishly replying, "Yeah, somewhat."

I chuckled again, telling him, "It's fine, Zack. You don't need to be ashamed of it. Truthfully, most of the others here are fans, as well. Hell, a few have even said that they'd love for him to cure their heat!"

_Still creepy as fuck._

Zack looked up at me, shocked, and said, "Seriously? Personally, I don't like him like that, merely as a role model. I can't believe that they love him that much."

I shrugged, agreeing, "Yep. Rather odd. Anyway, no, I've never worked with him before." Zack nodded back, so I asked, "Alright. Ready to go and eat? Mew is one hell of a cook."

A smile spread across my friend's face, as he replied, "Absolutely. Being homeless is not good for the appetite."

I chuckled as we both stood up, agreeing, "No, it is not." I wrapped my arm around the younger teens shoulder, as we started through the trees, saying, "But, Mew here can more than help that."


	14. Is That Why They Want Me Dead?

** Is That Why They Want Me Dead? **

I stepped into the training room, to see that ESTR was standing in the center of the room, with Shelby and Zack on either side of her.

"You ready?" I asked the Zoroark, approaching the two.

"Yeah." My Champion replied. "Only one issue. Where the hell is Dialga? Isn't she supposed to be here, especially during my first training session?"

"Yeah, she is." I agreed. "Any sign of her?"

Zack shook his head, and Shelby voiced, "Not since breakfast, but that was a few hours ago."

I nodded to them, telling them, "I'll go look for her."

They nodded back, and I spun around, heading for the door. I left the room, immediately starting for the cafeteria.  _If she isn't in there, then I'm sure that I could ask someone that is. I mean, I could check her room, but I sorta need to know where that is to do that._ I traveled through the Hall, before reaching the aforementioned room. Upon my arrival, I was slightly disappointed to see that there was a sever lack of a certain Temporal Pokemon. Instead, I saw that her sister was there, as well as Mew and Mewtwo, who were sitting at a completely different table than the Spatial Pokemon. Knowing well enough that Palkia holds a spite rivaling Moltres's for me, I instead went to the pink cat and her sibling, as they prefer to be called.

"Hey." I greeted the pair.

"Hey." Mew returned, with Mewtwo merely nodding my way.

_She's still not exactly happy with my existence. Doesn't hate me, though._

"Have you guys seen Dialga?" I asked the duo. "She was supposed to meet Zack, Shelby, and I in the training room for Zack's first training session, but she wasn't there."

"Odd." Mew commented, perplexed. "She's normally on time to everything, if not early. And she knew about this being scheduled?"

"Of course." I replied. "We've had it scheduled for a week now, the day after Zack got here."

"Weird." The pink cat said. "Sorry, but neither of us has seen her since breakfast."

I let out a sigh of defeat, but was stopped by Mewtwo speaking up, "Have you checked her room? She is commonly rather solitary, especially in the winter."

"No, I haven't." I answered. "Could you tell me where her room is?"

"Near the end of the Legends' hall." She replied. "It has her name on it, obviously, but most Champions don't know about it, as it's the very last one on the right side."

I nodded, saying, "Thank you."

I went to walk away, but Mew called after me, "So Shane, seeing as it's almost Christmas, any plans for you and Shelby?"

I smirked, calling over my shoulder, "Of course. Had it planned for weeks."

With that, I left the room, heading for the Legends' section of the Hall.  _What could be keeping Dialga? I mean, she seemed rather tired at breakfast this morning, so I guess that she could have gone back to sleep and just hasn't woken up yet._ I turned into the Legends' hall, only to almost run into Darkrai.

"Shane!" She exclaimed, shocked.

"Sorry." I apologized. "I'm in a rush. I didn't hear you coming."

"It's perfectly alright." She reassured. "But, to a more important matter, shouldn't you be with ESTR and Zack? I was just coming to watch."

"Technically, yes." I agreed. "But we can't find Dialga. She's supposed to watch him while we train, especially during his first session, but she wasn't there. I asked Mew and Mewtwo, and they haven't seen her since breakfast, so I'm going to go check her room."

Darkrai nodded, saying, "Alright. I'll go and wait in the training room. If she shows up before you, one of us will text you."

I nodded my thanks, as my Legend walked past me, her scarf thingy flowing behind her. As she turned the corner behind me, I started back down the hall, almost running. I came to her door in a matter of seconds, going into a skidding stop. I balled my hand into a fist, before pounding on the door, a little harder than I had intended. There was no response, but something did happen: the door opened slightly.  _Did she not properly close it?_ Without thinking, I reached for the knob, but I froze when I felt it in my hand.  _I shouldn't go in. It's her personal space. But what if she's asleep? Then I'd need to wake her up._ Using that as my excuse, rather than my intense curiosity, I slowly opened the door, revealing Dialga's room, devoid of the Legend herself. At first glance, it looked about the same as Mew's room, with the exception of the pink being a light blue, but I quickly noticed something that piqued my curiosity: a small book, flipped open, rested on the bed. Intrigued, I entered the room, shutting the door behind me. I went over to the book, and found that it was actually full of photographs, with the current page holding four, two on each side of the book. Three of them appeared to just be shots of a forest or a river, but one in particular interested me. The picture didn't show much, but that only drove my curiosity. What I could see showed a clearing by a dirt road, with what appeared to be the still forms of bodies lying in it. As if against my own will, I reached out, touching the photograph. As soon as my finger hit the surface, a bright light exploded in my face, and I felt myself fade into unconsciousness.

* * *

I slowly opened my eyes, blinking rapidly. I looked around from my position on the ground, and saw nothing but trees and bushes. I slowly got up, checking to make sure that everything had remained in one piece, before freezing at a sound.  _Grunts and shouts? Who's around me? Better yet, where the hell am I?_ Deciding that whoever the noises belonged to, I could handle them, should they turn hostile, I started for them, weaving through the trees. As I got closer, they began to wind down some, to where there was silence. Until I heard voices.

"Ember, did you do that?" I heard a male voice ask.

There wasn't a vocalized answer, but I heard sobs coming through the trees up ahead. I approached, peaking through the undergrowth, only to be shocked by what I saw. I stood at the edge of a clearing, with a hooded figure by a tree on the other side, and a small Flareon by his side. Around the clearing, I saw four bodies: two Eevee, a katana buried in one of them, an Umbreon, and what appeared to be a charred Scyther. Upon closer examination of the clearing, I saw a Glaceon by a rock, her eyes closed and her breathing slow.  _What the hell? Is this what I think it is?_

I watched as the hooded figure pulled the Flareon into a hug, soothing the small Pokemon, "Shh, shh. You did wonderfully, Ember. I know how hard that was for you, but just know that you did amazingly." Ember continued sobbing into his chest, as he continued, "You saved me, Ember. You saved my life."

The Flareon slowly calmed down, her tears ceasing, as she climbed further into the figures lap.

She looked up at her friend's face, telling him, "Sorry about that, Shade. It's just that I really don't like violence, and then having to do that. It's just-"

Shade cut her off, hugging her tighter and saying, "You don't need to apologize. I know how you are. If anyone should be apologizing, it should be me."

The Flareon's next sentence was slightly muffled by the embrace, but I heard her ask, "Why?"

"Because I ruined your old life, and then immediately put you in a position where you had to do what you hate most in the world." He replied, hugging her tightly.

After a few seconds of silence, Ember climbed up onto Shade's shoulder, where she sat down.

The hooded figure stood up, before asking, "Now, how about we go check on their prey?"

Ember nodded, and Shade started for the Glaceon, grabbing his sword from the Eevee on his way. Upon reaching the unconscious Ice type, he bent down, examining her.

He picked the Glaceon up, saying, "C'mon. We need to get her to the nearest town."

Ember nodded, replying, "Alright." She pointed towards me, telling him, "About two miles that way."

Shade nodded, and I thought that he was going to head for me, but he surprised me by diverting his path to something that I hadn't originally seen.  _A road? Am I really here?_  I watched from my place in the woods as Shade started down the road, Ember on his shoulder and the Glaceon in his arms. When they were fully out of sight, I left my position, stepping across the clearing. I reached the road, and turned around to face the clearing. Upon doing this, I froze in shock.

"Holy shit." I managed to say. "I'm in the picture."

Before I could say anything more, I was distracted by a small popping sound. I looked towards the sound's origin, behind me, to see what appeared to be a smaller version of the Hall's portal, glowing blue. Intrigued, I stepped up to it, before entering it. I was once again hit by the bright light, before passing out.

* * *

I let out a small groan, my back resting on a soft material.  _This is actually relatively comfortable._ I was fully prepared to just lie there for a few minutes, when I smelled two distinct scents that sent my eyes wide and my body up: Gasoline and blood. As I shot up, I saw that I was in a carpeted hallway, with a closed door to my left. Deciding that my curiosity could wait, I rushed towards a set of stairs down the opposite end, passing what appeared to be a pool of blood on the floor, but it was hard to tell, as it was the same dark color as the gasoline that had soaked into the floor. I shot down the steps, paying little attention to what appeared to be a mutilated Houndoom body hung above the front doors. I did, however, spare a glance into the room to my left, only to see that everything was coated in gasoline in there, as well. I burst through the open front doors, to see a form at the foot of the small stairs in front of me. I watched as the form, dressed in a light yellow jumpsuit from hell, bent down, a lit match in his hand. I rushed over to him, attempting to push him out of the way, only to find that I phased right through him. Shocked, I swung my hand through him a few times, each hit passing through like he was made of air.  _What the hell?_ Deciding that I was getting nowhere, I chose to watch him instead. He dropped the match onto a trail of gasoline, and a flame quickly formed, spreading up the trail and into the house. As the fire spread, the form, who I had now recognized as a black Lucario, stepped back, looking at the flames. After a few seconds, he started laughing loudly, his breath coming out in a fog in the cool air.

"What the hell is wrong with this kid?" I asked myself, as he continued laughing.

After a few more minutes of laughing and fire, I heard sirens coming closer. The Lucario obviously heard them, as well, as he stopped laughing, before taking off through the nearby woods. I was about to follow him, when I heard a small popping sound. I spun around, to see another blue portal had formed. Without waiting, I rushed into it, falling unconscious immediately.

* * *

This time, I felt my back lying on something a little rougher than the dirt and grass I had previously awoken on, as well as the carpeted floor. I opened my eyes, only to have my retinas be attacked by fluorescent lighting. After a few seconds of blinking, my eyes adjusted to the light, and I stood up, getting off of the hard floor. I looked around, seeing that I currently stood in what appeared to be a hallway, lined with lockers and doors.  _Now where am I?_ After a few seconds, I became aware of a sound.  _Music?_ I turned towards the sound, following it down the hall, until I reached a set of double doors. I was about to open them, when a they burst open, almost hitting me. As soon as the doors were open, a pair of people, a girl and a boy, rushed out, holding what appeared to be an Umbreon-morph between them. As they turned to run past me, I saw that he was dressed in all black, and he had blood on his hands and mouth. As the group ran past me, I turned to look into the room. The room was dimly lit and full of people, with a ring of them standing in the center of the floor. As I watched, a boy dressed like me with white hair and the tail and horn of an Absol dashed at one of them, fist raised. He was only a foot or so away, when a girl rushed to him, grabbing him around the waist and holding him back.

"No, Axe!" She shouted. "You can't hit him! You'll get in trouble!"

"Then I'll fucking stab him!" Axe replied, breaking from her grip.

He rushed forward, forming what appeared to be a claw of shadows on his right hand.  _Night Slash? Done by a human? Then again, he doesn't exactly seem normal._ He was about to land his clawed fist on his target's face, when a man in a trench coat stepped from the crowd, grabbing him by his shirt collar.

"Calm yourself, Axe." The man told the struggling boy. "Before you do something that you regret."

Without another word, the man pulled the boy away with ease, before stepping between the two teens.

"Now then," the man told Axe, "I believe that we have someone to go check on, don't we? Mei and Skyler could probably use some help, seeing as they seemed intent on carrying Cloud to the hospital."

At this, Axe appeared to calm down. He nodded to the man, before following him out of the room, with the girl quickly catching up.  _What the hell happened here?_  As the trio left down the hall, I heard another popping sound, drawing my attention. I turned to the sound, only to see that there was no portal. I went to the location of the sound, which appeared to be in front of a door. I opened the door, looking into the dark room. I saw another blue portal across the room, so I went to it. I stepped in, feeling the now familiar feeling of unconsciousness hit me.

* * *

This time, I woke up on a really fucking hard surface, and I felt my back scream in protest to me.  _Why the fuck is this happening? Here the hell have I even been going?_ My questions received no answer, obviously, but I was given something: the sensation of rain hitting me. I opened my eyes, to see that I was lying on a rooftop, rain pouring down on me from the night sky above. I slowly stood up, as I began to hear voices over the rain. I turned to them, and saw that the owners were a few roofs away. I quickly found an easy path to a roof near them, which I navigated swiftly. Upon my arrival, I could see that both of them appeared to be Umbreon-morphs, but there was something off about both of them: one had a forked tail and flickering blue rings, while the other had a half white body, with his rings matching. The one with white rings was standing at the edge of the roof, which I confirmed to be a rather dizzying drop, should someone slip.  _Or jump._ As I watched, the two appeared to be in a rather heated conversation, with the older and taller white ringed one keeping a rather calm voice, while the younger and shorter blue ringed one sounded close to tears.

"It doesn't have to be this way!" The shorter one called, desperation in his voice. "Shit's going to be okay! Just step away from the edge!"

"I can't do that, Sylva." The taller one addressed the shorter one. "It's not possible anymore."

"Yes, it is!" Sylva replied. "I promise you, whatever is wrong, we can all work out together! We're a family, and that means that we care for each other! And that means that none of us want you to jump!"

"I have to." The taller one calmly said. "It's the only way to stop it."

"Stop what?" His friend asked, his tears now appearing on his cheeks, visible even through the rain. "No matter what's wrong, it'll get better! My life did, and you caused that! Did you ever stop and think what I may have thinking when you found me? Why I was so close to a town with giant fucking buildings? I was going to end it! But I didn't, because of you! Because of you, because of Azura, because of Markus, because of our family! Jumping isn't the solution! You may think that life won't get better, but it will! I wish that it could right now, but it doesn't appear to be! But jumping will only prevent it from getting better!

This finally made the taller Umbreon raise his voice, as he shouted, "Nothing will ever get better with me around, Sylva! I promised that I would protect you guys, and I failed! I promised that I would protect Azura, and I failed! I'm the fucking cause of her pain! I'm the reason that she was taken! It's my fucking fault! Everything is my fault! It's my fault that my parents are dead, it's my fault that the only relative I have left is my sister! I'm the fucking reason that all of my family is dead!"

Sylva appeared to be in a stunned silence, before catching himself and telling him, "No, you aren't! None of that is your fault! It's not your fault, and I know that you would do anything to reverse it! I'm sorry, but you can't reverse it, but taking your own life won't help it! All you'll do is cause harm to the people who love you! You'll hurt Azura, Izaak! Is that what you want?"

There was a moment of silence, in which I saw tears start down Izaak's face.

"I'm sorry, Sylva." Izaak told his friend. "Goodbye."

And he leapt.

As his body tipped over the edge, aimed for the concrete below, Sylva rushed over to the edge, shouting, "Izaak, no!"

I shot over to the edge of my roof, looking off of the building, shocked. I hit the edge just in time to see his body hit the ground, making a crater in the concrete. As I continued watching, a car sped up, coming to a sideways skidding halt. Before it even fully stopped, all of the doors of the car other than the driver's door burst open, and four people rushed out, going over to the body. As the forms blocked out Izaak's body, I looked back over to Sylva. I saw that he had dropped to his knees, tears falling from his eyes, his audible sobs barely hitting my ears. I couldn't help but feel sorry for the Umbreon, and I wanted nothing more than to comfort him over the loss of his friend.  _Arceus, I wish that I could do something about this. It's so horrible._ This time, I was thankful to hear the popping of the portal appearing. I turned, facing the blue portal, and slowly stepped into it, my head hung. I was once again brought into unconsciousness, feeling the welcome emptiness.

* * *

When I woke up, I once again felt a rooftop below me. Rather than rain, however, I heard music playing, which I recognized to be  _Lion_ by Hollywood Undead. I opened my eyes, intrigued, to see that there was snow falling lightly around me. I stood up, quickly getting to my feet, to see that I was on a circular roof with and elevated helicopter pad in the center, leaving only a strip a few feet wide to walk on. Rather than being in an empty area, this time I woke up surrounded by people, all manning technical equipment. Rather than investigating them, I found the stairs to the helicopter pad. I went up them, to see a band playing in the center. The members appeared to be a Blaziken and Flareon on bass, a Zoroark on drums, an all black Absol and a familiar black Lucario on guitar, and a hooded figure singing. All of their instrument had what appeared to be a Mightyena painted on them, and the floor below them had "Nos sunt Lupi de Paris!" painted on it. Taking this moment to calm down, I sat down, watching them play.  _Damn. They're actually really good._  As I continued watching, I noticed the Umbreon that was previously injured standing on the other side of the helicopter pad. After a few more seconds, I heard the sound of multiple helicopters approaching. I quickly began looking around, before locating ten heavily armed helicopters heading straight for the building. They quickly surrounded us, and multiple things happened at once. The hooded figure dashed away from the microphone, leaping up at the center helicopter, the Lucario passed his guitar to the Flareon, as he ran to the microphone, the Flaron chucked her bass to the Umbreon, and they all kept playing.

As the Lucario went into J3Ts final verse of the song, the hooded figure started leaping from helicopter to helicopter, taking each pilot out with skill, and the Absol came up to his microphone and called, "We fight for the future! We will not stop until everything that you love and desire is burned to the ground, and we are free again! We are the resistance! We are the saviors of the people! We are the Wolves of Paris, and we will be victorious!"

When the Absol finished his small speech, he finished up the song with the chorus, as the hooded figure continued surprising me with his skill, before grabbing the final pilot out and leaping back onto the helicopter pad with him. The air was suddenly filled the sounds of crashing helicopters and exploding, as the song ended.

The Lucario walked up to the hooded figure, and asked, "What's with the guy?"

The figure flipped his hood off, revealing his half black and half white head, replying, "He's coming with us. He has some questions to answer for."

I heard another pop, this one right behind me. I stood up, before entering the portal at my back. I fell into unconsciousness, the white blankness hitting me.

* * *

I felt my back resting on a rather soft layer of grass, and I let out a sigh of content.  _Arceus, this is much better than fucking concrete._ After a few seconds, however, I became unbelievably wary of a new realization: I couldn't hear anything. No animals, no people, no music, no rain, nothing. My eyes shot open, and I was greeted by sunlight and trees. I shot up, looking around, only to recognize where I stood.  _The Hall of Origins? But the garden's tree is smaller than I've seen it. So, I guess that this proves my theory. I appear to be traveling through time._ I was suddenly broken from my thought by a loud scream resonating from the Hall. Acting quickly, I rushed into the Hall, fear creeping into my veins. I dashed through the halls, seeing shocking sights with each step. Blood splattered on the wall, doors broken off the hinges. I passed the cafeteria, and saw two forms that I recognized as the unconscious Celebi and Shaymin lying on the table, their clothing torn almost completely off. I was going to examine them, but I heard another scream, causing me to continue my sprint. I finally found the source, and I almost froze in fear. I burst into Arceus's room, to see a sight that made me almost double over and get sick. Arceus was completely nude, her body covered with scratches. She had three nude teens around her, all males, a Houndoom, a Charizard, and a Tauros.

"Oh, I bet that she'll be a tight little fuck." The Tauros huffed out.

"Anthony, stop this." Arceus pleaded to the Tauros. "I know that this isn't you. You don't need to do this."

At this, the Houndoom stepped forward and backhanded her, growling out, "Shut the hell up, bitch! We're going to claim you, and you're going to fucking love it."

"Please, don't do this, Charles." She begged the canine Pokemon. "Don't do this."

The Houndoom was about to growl out at her, when the door behind me burst open. I spun around, to see three people enter: a hooded figure, Dialga, and Darkrai, although quite different.  _Why is Darkrai a male?_ Within seconds, weapons appeared in their hands. The hooded person spawned two katana, and he quickly rushed to the Charizard, knocking him away. Darkrai spawned Black Rose, which was quickly flung at Anthony, sending a cut on his side. Dialga raised her hand, spawning a long rapier, before dashing at Charles.

"Don't kill them!" Arceus shouted. "Just incapacitate them!"

The fight went quickly, with the three newer arrivals making quick work of who appeared to be Champions. When they were done, they piled the three nude males together by the door.

"What should we do with them?" Darkrai asked, his voice rather deep.

"Lock them up, please." Arceus told him. "Gather up all of the Champions and lock them up. Males in the training room, females in the cafeteria."

Darkrai and Dialga nodded, before grabbing the unconscious trio and left the room. As soon as they did that, the Origin Pokemon collapsed onto the hooded figure, as she began to cry.

He began running his hand through her fur, soothing her, before asking, "Arceus, did they touch you? Did they do anything to you?"

"N-No." She replied. "I'm quite sure that I'm the only one female that wasn't touched, though."

"What will you do about them?" The man asked her.

"I-I don't know." She told him. "Wipe their memory and send them home, I guess."

The man nodded, pulling Arceus closer.

I continued watching the scene, stunned, until I heard a voice say, "You shouldn't be here, Shane."

I spun around, shocked, to see that Dialga stood behind me. This time, however, she appeared to be in my plane of existence, as she was obviously addressing me.

"I-I'm sorry." I stuttered out. "I came looking for you because you weren't in the training room, and I-"

I was cut off by Dialga coming over to me and covering my mouth. She didn't say anything else, as she held up her other hand, followed by a blue portal to appear. She led me into it, but this time there was no unconsciousness, no blank white. I just opened my eyes, and we were back in her bedroom. The Legend before me closed the book, which remained open on her bed, and motioned for me to sit down. I did so, and she joined me.

"I understand why you did it, Shane." She told me. "It's only natural for you to be curious. I know that you had no idea what that book was until it was too late. I'm not angry. Don't worry."

"Thank you." I said, nodding. I hesitated for a second, before adding, "But, truthfully, I'm still not entirely sure as to what that was."

Dialga sighed, before explaining, "That is the past of our world." I nodded, so she continued, "You see, I am the Legend that controls time, as we all know. Due to that, I see everything that has happened in the past. Sometimes my mind gets overloaded, so I must put them somewhere where they can stay without flooding my mind, such as the first three scenes, as well as the one with the Wolves of Paris." She hesitated for a moment, before going on, "Other scenes, however, I merely don't want to remember. Such as Izaak's suicide, and the last scene. Those scenes pain me. When I put them in there, I forget the details, but remember the main parts of it."

I nodded, saying, "So, that's the past of our world? All of that is the history of us?"

Dialga nodded, giving me no vocal reply. After that, we went silent for a few minutes.

Finally, I worked up the courage to ask the question that had been burning in me, "Dialga? Is that why I'm so hated here? Is that why some of the others want me dead?"

She sighed, obviously noticing the sadness in my voice, before pulling me into a hug and answering, "I'm sorry to say this, but it is. You see, that scene is almost a thousand years old. Those were the first Champions we ever had, and we were starting to make a difference. But that was when that event happened. The males just couldn't handle all of the heat scents surrounding them, and they lost it. People were hurt and raped, Legends and Champions alike. The few of us that actually have no issue with you here were unbelievably worried about what would happen when heat rolled around, but we were all pleasantly surprised to see that you never attempted anything. Truth be told, the only two of us that believed that you could handle it were Arceus and Darkrai. Not even Mew was so sure. But you proved us wrong, Shane. You've proven all of us wrong on so many occasions. You've proven that not all males are like that, and I'm sure that Zack will prove it even more, now that he's under your wing."

I nodded, saying, "Thank you. I'm sorry for what happened, and I'd give anything to reverse it."

"That isn't possible, young Champion," Dialga told me, "but you can absolutely help us now." I nodded again, and she asked, "Now, how about we go to that training session?"

I nodded one last time, and we rose, leaving the room.


	15. Now That'll Get You Killed, Kid

**Well, this took far too long to write. So, for the record, I was working on this chapter last night, and, as my Twitter followers know, my depression just said "No.". I just lost all will to do anything at all. Anyway, this is here now, so you should all thank the fact that the high today was, like, sub-freezing. That shit got me out of school, so I was able to write.**

***Snowball flies into screen, hitting Link and knocking him off of his chair***

**Shit!**

***Little Eevee with black fluff rather than white pops in, smiling***

**Claire: Got you, Link!**

**L: Claire?! Where in Arceus's name did you get snow?!**

***Glaceon-morph head pops in***

**L: *Growls* Ryan. Did you make her snow?**

**Ryan: *Sing-songy* Maybe... Why?**

**L: *Sighs* Because I don't like getting hit with snow while writing. Now, please, both of you get out of here. Hell, you guys haven't even appeared in your stories yet. And, Ryan, your story isn't even out yet.**

**Ryan: Your point? We've both been around since, like, the first month.**

**L: *Sighs* No, Claire has been around for the first month. You've been around since the second or third.**

***Link gets out of floor and sits on chair again. Clair runs over and leaps onto his head.***

**Claire: I don't wanna leave. It's warm in here, and I was just out in the snow. Please, Link. Please can we stay?**

**L: *Sighs* Fine. Just don't break anything.**

**Ryan: *Wheels another chair up next to Link and sits down.* Hadn't planned on it. May now, though.**

**L: Do it, and I castrate you with your own teeth.**

**Ryan: I have suddenly lost all desire to touch anything.**

**L: And now, reviews.**

* * *

**Guest: *Sighs* Claire? Mind taking this one? *Clair clears throat, before saying: Sir and/or Ma'am, at this point we here at Lunar Knights Incorporated are contractually obligated to inform you to slow the fuck down. All will be explained later. Just wait.* Thanks, kid. Also, for the record, NOTHING IS A FILLER! ALL IS IMPORTANT! CAPITAL LETTERS!**

**Vulpix's Flame: *High five* Nice one.**

**XxkinghorusxX: *Sighs* Do I need to have Claire deal with you, too?**

**Hero Lumanite: *High five to Ruby* Nice.**

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**L: That all?**

**Ryan: Yep. You're good.**

**L: Not fully. before we start, if any of you didn't read chapter fourteen, as the site was having some issues with chapters when it was put up, go and read it NAOW!11!**

**Ryan: Good now?**

**L: Si.**

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**Now That'll Get You Killed, Kid**

Shelby and I stood on the sidelines, observing Zack's training. Ever since his first training session almost a week ago, we've been meeting to train daily, commonly staying with ESTR late into the night. As we watched the Zoroark, he finished up a target run with a solid time of a minute and thirty five seconds.

Before I could even open my mouth to compliment him on having the third fastest time, falling just short of Chelsea's second place, he shouted, "Again!"

I let out a sigh, as ESTR complied, resetting the targets. As they began spinning up again, I nodded to the holographic girl, motioning for her to come over to us. She nodded back, appearing at my side.

"He's quite skilled, especially for such a short time here." The girl complimented. "He reminds me of you, Shane. You're really proving to be a good Mentor."

"Maybe so." I agreed. "But I should be doing better." She looked at me, confused, so I continued, "He's been spending too much time not only in here, but training in general. Last night, I saw him slip up and wince some, but he tried to hide it from me. He's pushing himself far too hard."

"Well, he's doing it for you, Shane." Shelby put in. "He's heard about your fight, and he's been trying to impress you."

I nodded, saying, "I know. He's one hell of a hard worker, and he obviously aims to surpass just pleasing, and impress everyone. But he's going about it the wrong way. He's going to hurt himself if he doesn't slow down."

ESTR was about to make a comment, when Zack finished with a similar time as before.

"Again!" He called out.

ESTR was about to comply, when I stopped her, saying, "Not today, Zack. That's enough training for today."

"But we've only been going for an hour." My Champion complained.

I rolled my eyes in amusement, telling him, "I know that, Zack, but we have other matters to attend to. Now, follow me."

He nodded, reluctantly coming over to me. When he reached me, we started for the door, the girls staying still.

"You boys have fun!" Shelby called after us.

"Maybe!" I responded. "See you guys at dinner!"

With that, we exited the room, and I began leading the way down the hall.

As we walked, I noticed that Zack had taken his normal position behind me, so I sighed, telling him, "Zack, once again, you can walk next to me. We're equals. It's not like I'm special and fucking holy."

He sped up slightly, falling into step next to me, as he mumbled, "Technically, we aren't equal."

"How so?" I asked him.

"Well," He replied, "you are my Mentor, and I'm your Champion. So, technically, you are higher up. Not to mention the fact that your skill far surpasses mine."

I rolled my eyes as we left the building, stepping into the snowy garden, before telling him, "Zack, I'm still a Champion. Just because I'm training you, that doesn't mean that I'm higher up than you. We're both still Champions. And I'm only more skilled than you because I worked at it longer. Give yourself some time. Don't push yourself like you have been doing. That'll only get you hurt."

"But I want to prove to you that I can be a good Champion." He insisted. "I want to impress you."

I sighed, turning to my Champion just at the edge of the leafless woods, before grasping his shoulders and saying, "Zack, you have proved that you're a good Champion. You're already one of the most skilled Champions here, and you've been here for less than a month. You have more than impressed me. Just stop straining yourself. I'm worried for your health."

He nodded to me, slowly saying, "Alright. I guess that I can see where you're coming from. I'll slow down some."

"Good." I told him, releasing his shoulders. "Now, let's get going. We're already running late."

As we started through the trees, he asked me, "So, where are we going?"

"To meet Mew." I informed him. I hesitated for a second, before adding, "And, by the way, you can't tell anyone about what we're about to do. Got it?"

"Uh, sure, I guess." He said. "Um, mind telling me what we're about to do, exactly?"

"I'll explain when we get there." I told him.

This time, he went silent, and I continued leading my Champion through the woods. After multiple minutes of walking, I saw our destination up ahead. We entered the white clearing up ahead, where I saw Mew, in her Pokemon form, and a large chest, as expected, but I was surprised to also see Celebi floating next to her, a smile on the green sprite's face.

"Celebi?" I asked. "What are you doing here?"

"Mew asked me to come out and help, should anyone get hurt." The Time Travel Pokemon told me. "So, I agreed, after some explaining as to what you were going to do. But, before we do, would you mind rolling up your sleeves? I'd like to check your arms' recovery."

"Of course." I replied, nodding. I pulled up my jacket sleeves, revealing my forearms, asking, "What do you think?"

Celebi flew over to me, before examining my healing arms, taking note of the half inch fur that had grown back.

"Pretty good." She told me, ghosting her hands over my arm. "I don't see any permanent damage or scars, so that's good. Just give it a week or so, and your fur will be completely regrown."

"Awesome." I commented, rolling my sleeve back up. "Don't get me wrong, I enjoy wearing jackets, especially in the winter, but I do tire of them."

"Um, I hate to interrupt," Zack spoke up, "but I still don't know what we're doing out here. I was just told to follow you."

"Oh, right." I said, remembering that fact. I nodded to Mew, asking the floating pink cat, "Mew? Care to open it up?"

"Of course." She responded, turning into her usual morph form.

As she began fiddling with the top of the Zelda-esqu chest, I turned to Zack, explaining, "Well, we're here to decide what weapon you get." His face was still painted with confusion, so I spawned Fair and Strife in my hands, continuing, "Well, by now you know that all Champions have their own Champion Weapons, right?"

"Except that you have two, unlike most others." Celebi commented, earning a small glare from me.

Zack nodded, so I went on, "Well, as I'm sure you know, you don't have one. So, we're here to fix that."

"So, I'm finally getting my weapon today?" He asked, excitement sneaking into his voice. I nodded, and a smile spread across his face, as he followed up with, "Awesome. What do I get?"

"Not sure yet." I told him, causing his excitement to deflate some. "That's why we have this chest here."

He turned to face the chest, intrigue scratched into his expression, as Mew finished opening it. From the container, she pulled out three things: a spear, a sword strapped to a large buckler, and a pair of clawed gloves.

"Pick one." I told Zack.

He looked at me, confused. I nodded to him, encouraging him, so he stepped over to Mew. After a few seconds, he tentatively took the hilt of the sword in his hand. He picked it up, undoing the leather strap to remove the weapon. He drew the sword, holding it out, before redoing the strap.

"That your choice?" I asked him.

"I-I guess." He told me, his voice uncertain. "I mean, they all seem interesting, this one just seems fairly simple to use. So, does this mean that this is the weapon I get?"

I smirked, relieving myself of Fair, before telling him, "Maybe." I swung Strife up to face forward, aimed directly at my Champion, as I said, "First, we must test it."

"Test it?" He asked me, warily eyeing my weapon. "Do you mean that I have to fight you?"

I nodded, informing him, "Yep. That chest is full of weapons that Mew has personally made. We're here to see which one you prefer, and which one you do best with. That will decide your weapon. Obviously, your personal preference overrides your skill with one. Should you find a specific one that you love, but you aren't exactly amazing with it, then we will work with that one until you are skilled with it. Should we luck out, and find one that you are both good with, and like simultaneously, then we shall have Mew bring it to Heatran and get it sealed as yours."

The Zoroark nodded to me, before hesitantly asking, "So, are we going to fight now? I mean, you'll inevitably kick my ass."

"That doesn't matter, Zack." I told him. "We're here to test your skill with the weapons. I will still take it easier on you, should you prefer that."

He appeared to think this choice over for a second, before shaking his head, telling me, "No. If I lose to you, then I want it to be honorably. No holding back. Fight me like you would any other Champion."

I smiled, admiring his attitude, as I instructed, "Very well. You give the call to begin."

He nodded, taking up a battle stance. He faced me, the sword in his right hand and the shield in his left, as he took a deep breath, calming himself. He set a look of determination on his face, before nodding to me, signaling the start.

He rushed towards me, as Mew called out, "Begin!"

Zack quickly cleared the distance between us, lashing out with the sword. Acting quickly, I ducked under the slash, launching my fist out and connecting with his stomach. The blow sent him doubling over, holding the assaulted body part, so I followed the attack up with a bicycle kick, sending him flying back against a tree. As his body made contact with the trunk, the force knocked some snow off of the dead branches. The Zoroark collapsed onto the ground, causing a puff of snow to pop into the air. He set up, coughing, as I went over to him.

"Not exactly my best attempt." He coughed out, knocking the snow off of his head.

I stuck out my hand, offering assistance, which he accepted, as I asked, "Wanna try again with that weapon, or go for a different one?"

"Different one, please." He told me, getting to his feet. "I like this one, but that wasn't exactly promising. That, and this weapon didn't feel natural to me."

I nodded, turning to Mew, who merely said, "Go ahead and pick one out from the chest. I just remembered that I need to do something."

Zack nodded, before going over to the chest, as I looked at Mew curiously.

"What do you need to do?" I asked the Pokemorph cat.

She came over to me, before holding her hand out and ordering me, "Give me Fair."

Confused, I spawned Fair, complying. She took my sword in her hand, before reaching into her jacket pocket. She retracted her hand, pulling out what appeared to be a large caliber bullet. Without a word, she pressed a small button next to the clip on Fair, causing the aforementioned container to pop out.

She stabbed Fair into the ground, before holding the clip and the bullet up, asking me, "See this bullet?"

I nodded, looking at the round, noticing the yellow stripe at the bottom.

"This is a Stun Shot." Mew told me. "It's a modifier that I made for Fair."

She turned the top of the clip to face me, revealing that it only held one shot, leaving space for five more rounds.

She popped the bullet from the clip, revealing a black stripe along the bottom of it, before telling me, "As you know, this is a Standard Shot. It fires just like any normal bullet." She popped the Standard Shot back in the clip, before continuing, "Well, this Stun Shot does just what you'd expect. It doesn't hurt as much, but it will give whoever you hit a shocking surprise, leaving them incapable of movement for about ten seconds."

"And it really works." Celebi commented. "Trust me. It still hurts like hell, though."

Mew rolled her eyes, continuing, "So, this is a Modifier Bullet." With that, she popped the shot into the clip, before loading it back into Fair, and adding, "I'm working on some more, but I don't know how long it'll be before I get them done." She took Fair from the dirt, before handing the sword to me, telling me, "Just hit the new button behind the trigger, and it'll change shots."

Intrigued, I flipped Fair over, noticing the small button that she was talking about. I hesitated slightly, before pressing down on the button. There was a small clicking sound, followed by Fair's blade beginning to glow. The effect stopped after a few seconds, revealing that the black blade that Fair had previously possessed now had a yellow coloration.

"Damn." I commented. "Thanks for making me even more overpowered."

"No problem." Mew told me. "Of course, you need to think Zapdos, as well. She proved to be rather helpful with the electric power."

"Zapdos?" I inquired. "She knew what you had planned for the bullet, correct?"

"Of course." The feline legend replied, nodding. "She may not like you, but she doesn't hate you. To her, it was just helping the cause. She was assisting in our victory."

I nodded, saying, "Well, I can see that. It's sure to help, should I ever actually be taken on a mission."

"Yeah, that still has yet to happen, doesn't it?" Celebi broke in. "I wonder why. I mean, you're more than skilled enough to partake in one. Hell, you could probably lead one."

Mew let out a sigh, before saying, "Don't tell anyone that I said this, but I honestly think that Arceus might be frightened of losing people. We don't go on anywhere near as many missions as we should, and she's been allowing us all to take a break for all of December. No one has been training, save for Zack."

"Well, maybe she can be convinced after Christmas." I told her. "While we do need to go on missions, I do agree with her. It's never fun losing someone that you care about."

"You say that as if you have some experience with it." Mew said, a slight pity creeping into her voice. "Have you lost someone before?"

I sighed, telling her, "Not necessarily. It's hard to lose someone that never fully came to be." I let out another sigh, before changing the topic, asking, "Zack, found a weapon yet?"

"Possibly." The Zoroark replied, his voice slightly muffled by his current position, his head in the chest. He popped up, an item in his hands, before telling me, "Got it. This seems fun."

I looked at the weapon in his hands, intrigued as to what he chose. Upon seeing his choice, I was rather confused to see that he held only a pair of black gloves.

Mew gasped, asking, "Do you actually know what those are?"

"I believe so." The Zoroark replied, slipping them on. "Do they actually work?"

"Of course." The cat told him. "I just finished them last week. I was wondering if you'd know what they were. Do you know how to use them?"

"I think." He said. "Gimme a second."

With that, he took a deep breath, appearing to be in a deep concentration. After a few seconds of nothing, the gloves began to glow, before a large purple scimitar, seemingly made of flames, appeared in each hand. Both Zack and Mew laughed, smiling, before the scimitars became daggers, followed by short swords.

"What the hell are those things?" I asked Mew, as the swords disappeared.

"Roulette Gloves." Mew explained. "They harness the user's power, and turn it into a random weapon. Since Zack is a Dark type, every weapon he summoned was and will be charged with Dark power."

"So he can essentially make any weapon?" I inquired, impressed by Mew's engineering prowess.

"Other than ranged weaponry, yes." She clarified. "But, due to the Dark typing, this will make him somewhat underpowered against you. I mean, it'll still do some Normal typing damage to you, as it needs that power to make it a solid weapon, but it won't be as strong as it would normally. And, as I previously stated, it makes a random weapon. It could be a sword, could be an axe, could be anything."

I nodded, turning to Zack, asking him, "Ready to go?"

"Wanna get a little music going?" He countered.

I chuckled, taking my phone from my pocket and once again causing Fair to disappear.

I chucked it to him, saying, "You choose."

He caught my phone with ease, before starting to cycle through my music. He appeared to find a good song within seconds, as he stopped scrolling, before tossing the phone back to me.

I looked at the chosen song, before smirking, remarking, "Little overconfident, don't you think?"

He shrugged, a determined look going over his face, as he replied, "Maybe. How about we just start it?"

I smiled at my Champion's determination, telling him, "Give the signal."

He nodded to me, forming a pair of short swords in his hands.

"Go." He spoke.

I hit the play button on my phone, before clipping it to my jeans, just as  _Unstoppable_ by Motionless in White started up.

"Begin!" Mew and Celebi shouted simultaneously.

As soon as the words left the Legends' mouths, Zack shot across the clearing at me. Knowing that he wouldn't fall for the same trick twice, I took a step to the side, dodging his slashing blades. I countered his attack with one of my own, sending Strife in a horizontal slash at the Zoroark. The blade caught him in the stomach, signaled by the gasp that escaped his lips, so I used the weapon to send him flying back. Rather than hitting a tree, Zack used his flying momentum to his advantage, quickly steadying himself in midair, before lashing out with his sword. The flaming blade stuck into the wood of the tree, stopping it's wielder, who then placed his feet on the trunk. He kicked off of the tree, pulling his sword with him, aiming both blades for me. Acting quickly, I ducked out of the way, causing the Zoroark to fly over my head. I heard him land on his feet, and I spun around to face him.

"Going to have to try harder than that to hit me." I told him.

"You so sure?" He countered, smirking.

Confused, I was about to question his words, until I became aware of a certain sensation on my right cheek. I brought my finger up to the sensation's location, before pulling my hand away, revealing the blood that I knew rested there.

"Nicked my cheek, I see." I commended him. "Very nice. But I feel that you must know that that was one hell of a mistake."

"Bring it, Mentor." He taunted mockingly.

I smirked at his cockiness, before charging my feet with Dark Pulses. Without another word, I launched myself at the smirking Zoroark, Strife dragging the ground. Just before I hit the surprised Illusion Fox Pokemon, I stabbed Strife into the ground, releasing the hilt, as I charged a Dark Pulse in my right hand. As I reached Zack, I did a spin in midair, hitting him with the Force Punch directly in the back of his head, sending him onto his face, mere inches from Strife. I came to a sliding stop, kicking up snow, before whipping around. I smirked upon seeing that Zack was still picking himself up from the snow, rubbing the back of his head.

"Strife." I commanded. "Boomerang."

As soon as I spoke, my sword began quivering in the ground, before freeing itself from the dirt and flying towards me, the hilt barely missing Zack's head.

"Yipe!" He exclaimed, dropping back to the snow.

I caught Strife with ease, smirking, before asking, "Wanna admit defeat?"

Instead of responding, I watched Zack replace the twin swords with a large executioner's axe, which he sent flying towards me. I quickly ducked under the weapon, flattening my ears to my head, feeling nothing but the movement of the air as the axe sped over me. As I straightened up, I saw that Zack had regained his footing, and he was rushing towards me, ready to attack. Deciding to even the playing field, I stabbed Strife into the dirt, charging my fists with Dark Pulses.  _Well, sorta even the playing field._ Just before he hit me, he stopped short, before coating his hands in Shadow Claws, seeming to be made larger by the gloves' usage. He slashed out at me, and I felt the blades connect with my stomach. Both Mew and Celebi let out gasps of shock, as I looked down to see blood slowly begin dripping from a set of cuts in my midriff.

Zack appeared to realize what he did, as he quickly removed the claws, spurting out, "Holy shit, Shane. I'm so sorry. I just got into the battle, and I forgot that I'm not meant to actually hurt you, and-"

I cut him off, spawning Fair and aiming it at the crouched Zoroark, growling out, "Wrong move."

Without another word, I cycled Fair to Stun Shot, before pulling the trigger. The yellow blade jumped in my hand, as a loud blast resounded throughout the woods, surely being heard back at the Hall. The shot connected with Zack, sending him flying back, skidding across the ground. When he landed, I saw little sparks of electricity jump off of the Zoroark, as he lay paralyzed. I lowered my weapons, expecting that to seal my victory, but I was surprised to find that Zack picked himself up as soon as possible, blood dripping from his nose, growling deeply.

"So, that's how this fight is going, eh?" He growled out, regaining his feet. He held his hands out, spawning a large hammer in them, before taunting, "Then let's fucking go."

Within seconds, he was rushing towards me, ready to attack. Knowing that I couldn't dodge a weapon as large as his hammer, I braced myself for the impact. I wasn't let down, as he swung the weapon in a horizontal arc. Just before the weapon his me, I noticed a second glow to it, one that I recognized.  _He Pulse charged it?_ Before my thoughts could continue, the hammer hit me in the chest, sending me flying back, Strife and Fair being pried from my hands. Rather than hitting the tree behind me and stopping, I broke through it, and continued flying, breaking a few more trees as I flew. As I hit the ground, I felt my back groan in protest, reminding me of the fight in the woods with the Eon sisters.  _Still haven't gotten too close to them since I won that giant battle. Wonder how they'll act now._ As I got to my feet, I heard feet rushing towards me, and I looked up in time to see Zack leap into the clearing, swinging down with his hammer. Ignoring the pain coursing through me and the blood soaking my clothes, I dodged the attack quickly, causing him to hit the ground where I had previously been. Without taking time to spawn my weapons, I charged my right foot with a Dark Pulse, before swiftly kicking him in the back, sending him flying forward, his face breaking trees on the way. I quickly chased after the flying Zoroark, catching up to him as he hit a clearing. I came to a skidding halt in said clearing, to see that he landed about five feet from the pond in front of the Hall, and multiple Champions and Legends had gathered, all with shocked expressions on their faces.

"Shane?" Shelby called out from the front. "What the hell?"

"Training." I replied simply, as Zack picked himself up.

Before anyone else could speak, Zack sent himself flying at me, attempting to do a double kick.  _He's getting desperate._ I spawned Strife in my hands, putting the sword up in a slanted horizontal position. Zack's feet hit perfectly on Strife's blade, and I quickly used my Psychic on his shoes, keeping him there.

"Fatal mistake." Was all I said, before charging Strife with a Dark Pulse.

I detonated the attack, sending the Zoroark on my blade flying high into the air. Quickly spawning the reverted Fair, I stabbed the sword into the ground at an angle, before pulling the trigger. The force of the shot sent me flying into the air, and Strife from my hand, but I didn't fly high enough. I used my Psychic to hold Fair under my feet, as I began charging a Dark Pulse on each foot. I detonated the attacks, launching myself even higher, to where I was on par with Zack's height. I quickly charged a Dark Pulse in my right hand, before mimicking my fight in the training room by slamming the attack into the Zoroark's stomach, sending him flying down to the ground. He impacted next to the pond, and a large plume of dust coated the clearing, prevent all sight. I dropped to the ground, landing perfectly, despite my injuries. I slowly stalked over to the crater that Zack made. Rather than allowing the dust to clear, I spawned Strife in my hands, before slashing in a circle above my head, clearing the dust. As the song ended, I laid eyes on a broken looking Zoroark lying in the dirt bowl.

"Holy shit." I heard Mew exclaim, before rushing up next to me.

Without another word, she dropped into the crater, sliding over to the Zoroark. As I stood there, a crowd formed, and Celebi quickly followed Mew.

"What the hell, Shane?" Shelby questioned me, running up to me. "Why the hell did you go so hard on him? You may have fucking killed him!"

Just as what I just did dawned on me, I noticed something.  _His hair doesn't have the black tips._ Keeping a stony face, I listened for any sounds of life outside of the crowd, before finally hearing a tap on marble, signaling his location. Without speaking, I spawned Fair, before pointing the sword at the Zoroark in the crater. I pulled the trigger, sending a round flying at the center of the crater, just as I heard the sound of jumping. I spun around, switching to Stun Shot, before aiming at a seemingly random location in the sky, one that I half guessed myself, and pulled the trigger. Two things happened at once. The shot connected with the Zoroark in the crater, causing the illusion to snap into nothingness, and my stunned Champion dropped to the ground at my feet, his broadsword dropping next to him.

"Nice work on the Illusion Zoroark." I commended my Champion, as gasps of shock echoed around the clearing. "But, next time, don't forget the tips of your hair. That was a dead giveaway."

As the Stun Shot wore off, and Mew and Celebi became Pokemon again and flew up to join us, Zack let out a sigh, replying, "Damn it. I felt like I forgot something. Didn't have too much time, though."

I smiled, holding my hand out to the Zoroark, who accepted it, as I told him, "Yeah, you really didn't. That'll happen in the field, though. Nice to see that you're pretty skilled with it."

He chuckled, wincing at the pain involved in the action, before spitting some blood from his mouth and replying, "Thanks. It comes in handy when stealing food and shit from the cops. I see that your skill is absolutely not exaggerated around here. That was one hell of a fight."

"Well, sir, you're one hell of an opponent." He told me. "And I know that I'm not meant to call you that, but it seems fitting after something like that."

I chuckled, wiping some blood from my cheek, before replying, "I'll let this one slide. An opponent as formidable as you deserves to call me whatever you want."

"Thanks, shit head." He joked.

"Now that'll get you killed, kid." I retorted, smiling at him.

"Thought so." He said, chuckling.

"Um, guys?" Shelby interrupted. "Hate to cut this little scene short, but you're both bleeding. Like, a lot."

I looked down at myself, telling her, "Meh, I've been worse. I mean, I'm in pain, but it's no big deal."

"Yeah, I've been in more pain than this." Zack added. "I mean, this hurts like hell, but try being shot in the leg and having to limp five miles home. That shit will break a person."

I chuckled, telling me, "Remind me to try that sometime. Sounds fun."

I saw Shelby roll her eyes at us, as Zack joked, "Only if you promise to let me catch my arms on fire. I hate my fur anyway."

My Flareon girlfriend let out a sigh of annoyance and minor amusement, before saying, "Let's just get you guys to the clinic and get you some painkillers. Celebi, can you come and heal them up?"

"Of course." The green sprite responded, flying over to the door. "C'mon."

I nodded to her, as Zack started for the door, with Shelby and I following behind.

"I swear," Shelby remarked, as we entered the Hall, "you've used more painkillers in the short time that you've been here than we've ever used before then."

I shrugged, replying, "Well, that's all part of my charm." Dropping my voice to a whisper, I told her, "I think that he may be ready."

"Really?" Shelby whispered back, surprised. "He's only been here for a short time. Are you sure?"

"Shelby, you should have seen the kid." I told her. "He's kick ass. Honestly, if you two were to fight, it'd be a tossup on who would win."

"Damn." She commented. "When?"

"After Christmas." I informed her, as Zack and Celebi turned a corner up ahead. "I still want to take this small break, seeing as the Organization hasn't exactly acted much, and he and I need some time to make sure that nothing got seriously injured."

"Alright." She responded, nodding slightly. "Do you have his gear still?"

"All in the box." I reassured her, as we rounded the corner.

She nodded, growing silent as we reached Zack and Celebi, who were waiting at the clinic door.

"Arceus, you two walk slowly." Zack told me.

"Yeah, sorry." I countered. "Bleeding from my stomach here."

"Yeah, and I've eaten more dirt today than ever before." He retorted.

I rolled my eyes at the Zoroark, as we entered the room.

* * *

**Fight scenes! Action! Exposition! Zack finally getting a weapon!**

**Claire: You are really hyper, and I'm a kid.**

**L: *Deadpans* Be quiet. Anyway, what'd you think of the chapter? Like it? You guys getting tired of action yet? Well, the next chapter will be another exposition chapter, so it'll be a cool down. See you guys there.**

**Ryan: Stay Sick, Lunar Knights.**

**All: Bye!**


	16. He's Losing His Shit!

***Camera opens on an empty room, devoid of people* *Glaceon head pops in, looking around***

**Azura: Damn it! Why is he never fucking here!?**

***Ground begins rumbling, shaking everything***

**Azura: What's happening?**

***A large tidal wave crashes in, Link riding on top of it, a Vaporeon at his side***

**Link: C'mon, Skylar! Let's fucking go!**

**Skylar: Woo!**

***The duo dismount the wave, causing it do dissipate***

**Link: *Gets into chair* Fuck, I'm late! Sorry for the wait, kiddos, but you all probably know the reason. But, I have returned with this new chapter! And I am excited! Not because of a specific thing involving this chapter (It was fun, though) but because Hollywood Undead released a new song! Yass! Listen to it! _Usual Suspects!_**

**Azura: Toooo fucking hyper, man.**

**Link: *Deadpans* Get over it... On to the chapter with implied sexiness!**

* * *

**He's Losing His Shit!**

I shot my arm up quickly, timing each one to intersect my Champion's flying fists, knocking them away. He sent a quick jab to my stomach, but I saw it coming, allowing me enough time to slide out of the way, causing him to hit nothing but air. He quickly switched strategies, morphing it to counter my move, sending out a floor sweeping kick. Acting quickly, I leapt over him, flipping mid-air, only to land on my feet with ease. Before he could attack, I launched my hand out, taking hold of his wrist, before grabbing his outstretched leg with my other one.

As he struggled to escape my grip, I leaned in, asking, "Forfeit?"

The Zoroark growled at me, attempting to break free, only to have no success.

I tightened my grip, pulling his arm up behind his back, causing him to yelp out, "Fine! You win!"

I smirked, releasing Zack, causing him to collapse on the ground. I glanced over to the door of the training room, before nodding to the blue girl by the door. ESTR nodded back, before teleporting over to us.

"That was really good, Zack." She complimented the Illusion Pokemon, as he picked himself up. "You're really improving."

"Still got my ass kicked." He commented, somewhat sourly.

I clapped him on the shoulder, telling him, "Yeah, and I've trained far longer than you. It's to be expected."

He rolled his eyes slightly, sighing, "Yeah, I know. Still rather irksome."

I was about to reply, my mouth already open, when I felt a buzz start up in my pocket. Startled, I pulled my phone out, checking the notification.

"What's up?" Zack asked me, as I mentally face-palmed.

"Shit, I almost forgot." I told him. "I need to go get tonight ready?"

Perplexed, the Zoroark inquired, "Tonight?"

"Christmas is in a few days," I answered, "so Shelby and I have decided to go ahead and have our own little celebration tonight. That way we can spend Christmas with everyone else, like a dysfunctional family."

"Sounds nice." ESTR commented. "Have something special planned for you two?"

I smiled at her, replying, "Oh, hell yeah. I'm sure that she'll love it."

Zack returned my expression, telling me, "Then go, man! Don't let us keep you!"

I nodded, dashing for the door, calling back, "See you guys later!"

As soon as I was out of the training room, I started dashing down the hall, heading for the kitchen.  _Arceus, I can't wait for tonight. But… But I still can't forget these questions I have. I must talk to Dialga tonight._

* * *

I led Shelby through the woods, the moonlight dancing on the snow covered trees.

"C'mon, Shane." She urged. "Can you please tell me where we're going?"

"Nope." I told her, inwardly chuckling at the Flareon's impatience. "Besides, we're almost there."

"Oh, fine." She accepted, allowing me to finally take her through the woods in silence.

After another minute or so of walking, we came to a large clearing, the dirt coated in a layer of snow. In the center of the clearing, a lit candle resting on it, stood a small, round table, a comfortable dining chair on each side. I led Shelby up to the table, before pulling out one of the chairs. I motioned for her to sit in it, and she complied, a shocked look on her face. I pushed her chair in, before going around and taking my own seat. My girlfriend was about to speak, but I cut her off, holding a finger up. She closed her lips, nodding to me, and I clapped my hands once. At my signal, a familiar anthro cat came from the tree line, clad in a suit and tie, one slightly too small around the chest are, her pink face presenting a wide smile. In her hands, she held two covered plates, the contents I already knew, having cooked them earlier.

She approached us, her posture perfect, before sitting the plates in front of us, telling us, "Your meals have arrived, my lovely couple."

I glanced over to Shelby and, noticing that my girlfriend appeared too stunned to say anything, thanked, "Thank you, Mew. Could we please have something to drink?"

She nodded to me, replying, "Of course, Sir Shane."

She snapped her fingers, causing another covered plate to float from the trees, arriving in her outstretched hand quickly. She removed the cover, revealing a bottle of red wine and two wine glasses. She placed the glasses in front of us, before uncorking the wine. She filled both of our glasses, before sitting the bottle on the table between us.

"One last thing." She informed us.

She placed the plate that had previously held our drinks on the table, before clapping loudly. Within seconds, the sound of tons of Kricketunes erupted from the trees, filling the forest with music.

Mew smiled at me, before giving a large bow, telling us, "Enjoy your meal, my dear children."

And with that, she picked up the dish and left, leaving myself and the stunned Flareon across from me alone.

We sat there silence, Shelby's eyes wide, until she spoke, "Wow, Shane. You did all of this?"

I smiled, nodding, telling her, "Well, mostly. Mew helped serve us, obviously."

Shelby's shocked expression was replaced with a large smile, as she said, "Thank you, Shane. This is wonderful. I can't believe that you went through so much trouble for me."

"Don't worry." I told her. "It was nothing. Especially for the love of my life."

Shelby's smile only widened, before an idea appeared to pop into her head.

Her eyes shrunk to a lidded expression, and I recognized the tone in her voice when she spoke, "Well, how about we eat quickly, and we can go back to your room for your gift?"

I smirked, already feeling my body react to the suggestion, replying, "Of course."

* * *

I stared at my ceiling, Shelby's warm head resting on my shirtless chest.  _Why the hell can't I get these questions out of my mind? I mean, they were out with Shelby with me, but now that she's asleep I just can't stop them. I… Fuck. I'll go see if she's awake. If she is, then I'll ask. If not, then that's that._ I gently moved my girlfriend off of my chest, moving the nude Flareon's head onto my pillow, before pulling the blanket up to cover her body. I slid off of the bed, feeling the slightly chill air against my exposed body.  _Shit. Forgot that I turned the heat off in here. Just seemed stupid to have it on while having some fun._ I reached over, bumping the temperature up, before going over to my dresser. I pulled out some jeans, before slipping them on, followed by my shoes. I sprayed myself with body spray to cover the sex scent, before slipping my jacket onto my fully furred arms.  _So nice to have my arms fixed. Fucking hated not having fur._ I went to my door, before leaving my room. I started down the hall, pulling my jacket around me.  _Why the fuck did I not put on a shirt?_ Scoffing at my own stupidity, I turned a corner, heading for a certain Legend's door. I reached it quickly, bringing my fist up to deliver a few sharp raps.

"You may enter." Was the shocking reply.

I hesitated momentarily, before pushing the door open, revealing both Diagla and, oddly enough, Darkrai, both sitting on the Temporal Pokemon's bed in their Pokemorph forms.

"Come in, Shane." Dialga greeted me, waving to me. "And close the door behind you."

I nodded, complying, my eyes never leaving the two Legends in front of me.

"So, Shane," Dialga began, "I knew that you'd be returning. I could tell that you still had questions burning in you, ones that you were merely too shocked to form into full thoughts."

"Er, yes, actually." I told her, nodding. "I was wondering if I may ask them? And ask why Darkrai is here?"

"Well, you may ask your questions, of course." The dragon answered. "And Darkrai is here to help me with them. I had a feeling that you'd stop by tonight."

"Alright." I replied, nodding. I thought for a second, before asking my first question, "So, I noticed something last time. Darkrai was a male in that memory. Why?"

Dialga nodded, before turning to my Legend, asking, "Darkrai? Would you like to explain this one?"

Darkrai nodded back, telling her, "Of course." She turned to face me, before beginning, "Long ago, not all of the Legends were females. A fair amount were males, some of which you are friends with. Myself, Dialga, and Mewtwo. We were males. So were others, such as Giratina, Entei, and even Moltres. But after the incident, Arceus forced us to change into females. There was protesting, of course, but we all complied in the end. Some of us, such as Entei and Moltres, weren't too adamant on remaining males, and they quickly joined some of the female Legends in the belief that all males are horrible creatures. Others, obviously, did not feel that way."

I nodded, rather surprised at the Legends that were males, before asking, "Alright. So, can you guys still be males?"

At this, a worried expression flashed across Darkrai's face, as she turned to Dialga, asking, "Dialga? Should I attempt it?"

"I see no reason why not." Was the reply. "I mean, you did tell me that you still do it occasionally, so not to forget how." My Legend still appeared unconvinced, so Dialga added, "If you change, then I shall too. We can revert afterwards."

Darkrai nodded, before standing up. She looked at me, before closing her eyes. As she did this, the same black swirl that surrounded her on the day we met appeared, spiraling around the form of my Legend. As Darkrai was hidden, I glanced over to Dialga, to see that she was merely staring at me, an amused expression in her eyes. After a few seconds of the spiral, it started to dissipate, slowly revealing the form of a human. When the spiral fully cleared, a man stood there, his gray hair flying back, before resting just at the small of his back. He stood, clad in clothing with patterns similar to Diana's, but an obvious male version. He wore a pair of baggy black jeans, a few chains running along them, with his torso covered in a plain black shirt and a long, chain adorned jacket, ending just at his feet, which were protected by thick, black boots.

He flashed me a sharp, cocky smile, accenting the scars on his face, before shooting out his hand, his inhumanly deep voice introducing, "Derek. Reaper of Souls."

I nodded, shaking his hand, somewhat intrigued by the fact that he was actually as tall as me.

"Nice height growth, Darkrai." I joked, smirking.

He returned the snarky tone in my voice, shooting back, "At least I don't burn my hair off."

I deadpanned, before being distracted by a similar aura surrounding Dialga, this one a light blue. After a few moments, the aura disappeared, leaving Dialga standing there, now a male. Rather than being a human, Dialga remained a morph, clad in essentially the same clothing a before, with the hoodie being a little baggier, as he had no breasts, obviously.

"Not too fond of your male human form, are you?" I joked.

"Of course not." His eloquent voice replied. "That's absurd. I greatly prefer being in this form."

I smirked at the Legend's reaction, telling him, "Oh, you're no fun."

Dialga rolled his eyes, sighing out, "Whatever. Darkrai, we can change back now."

"I don't know." The human Legend said. "I sorta like this form. I mean, it's our original one. That, and running with boobs sucks. Took me weeks to not smack myself in the fucking face with them."

"Oh, like you hated that." Dialga mocked, as the black swirl surrounded my Legend.

"Never say I did." The swirl spoke.

"Speaking of which," I questioned, as the swirl disappeared, revealing that Darkrai had become a Morph again, staying male, "really odd question, but what sexuality would that make you guys?"

While Dialga froze at the question, Darkrai answered in step, replying, "Well, I've always been bisexual. Therefore, it didn't really change anything. I mean, I lost an appendage, but I gained two."

"D-Darkrai!?" The dragon shouted, shocked. "Is that really something that you had to respond to?"

"Why not?" Darkrai retorted, shrugging. "He asked, and it's a pretty harmless answer." He waited a few seconds, before smirking, adding, "Besides, don't act like we didn't fool around some."

My eyes went wide, as Diagla asked, "Why did you tell him that!?"

"Wait." I interrupted. "You two had sex?"

Dialga's eyes grew to dinner plates, as Darkrai replied, "Oh, hell yeah. Multiple times. Dialga here may seem all tough and stoic, but in the bedroom he's actually quite submissive. He really does love being filled."

I had to hold back my laughter, as Dialga retorted, "Okay, yes, we slept together. But it isn't like it occurred more than a few times."

"A few?" Darkrai countered, taken aback. "Oh, please, a few in a week, maybe. Hell, we had more than 'a few' with Gary joining in."

As Dialga became increasingly flustered, I asked, "Gary?"

"Oh, right." Darkrai said, shaking his head. "Giratina. When a female human, it's Grizzelda, which even she hates, but when she becomes a male human, he goes by Gary."

I nodded, as Dialga shouted back at Darkrai, "Will you be quiet about our sex life? Next you'll be telling him that we were together last night!"

I deadpanned, watching as Dialga realized what he said.

"Er… You just did." Darkrai pointed out.

"Shut! Up!" Dialga told him. The dragon let out an annoyed sigh, before turning to me, saying, "Leave the topic. Any more questions?"

"Er, yeah, actually." I replied. "Well, you do have a special connection with time, and can see the past, so can you see the future, as well?"

He let out a sigh, asking, "You mean, can I see if we'll win, right?" I nodded, and he replied, "Not fully. I can see into the future some, but only things that will happen. I've attempted to see the victor before, and I've never been able to see anything."

"But-" Darkrai started, but he was cut off by Dialga's glare.

Before I could ask my Legend to continue, Dialga resumed speaking, "But, I can see what is guaranteed. Would you like to see that?"

I nodded, replying, "Yes, please. Any glimpse is better than ignorance."

"While that logic is quite flawed, I shall show you." He told me, raising his hand.

He muttered a few words, and his hand began to glow. The dragon chopped downward, his glowing hand creating a blue rift in the air.

"Follow me." He told us, before stepping in.

Both anxious and cautious, I looked over to Darkrai. He just shrugged, before stepping into the rift and disappearing. I sighed, following the Legends in. As soon as I stepped into the rift, I felt myself spinning, becoming increasingly dizzy. As I sped up, I had to resist the urge to be sick, until I was suddenly on flat ground, stumbling forward. I landed on my hands and knees, sinking into a blanket of snow, before dry heaving to the ground.

"Holy shit." Darkrai's worried voice sounded behind me. "Shane, are you alright?"

I didn't respond immediately, still dry heaving for a few seconds, before coughing out, "Next time, we take the Floo Network."

I heard Dialga let out a sigh of annoyance, with Darkrai adding in his own low chuckle, as I got to my feet, attempting to keep myself from losing my dinner. When I was sure that I would be alright, I looked around, noticing my surroundings. I appeared to be in a large park in the center of a small town, snow falling down steadily, adding to the blanket already there. I noticed a train station across the park, but I was more focused on the scene in the middle.

I glanced over to Dialga, who nodded, responding, "We'll move in to hear them."

With that, we moved closer, allowing us to hear the words being thrown between the nine forms.

"Piss off, Lino!" The Umbreon-morph shouted at the human male across from him, keeping his arm in front of the Luxray-morph next to him, as if offering protection.

"Why should I, freak?" The teen, Lino, retorted.

"Because we have you more than outnumbered, and we could easily kick your ass." The peculiar teen next to the Umbreon spat back.

"Dialga?" I spoke up. "Why does he look as he does? He appears human, but he has Sceptile features."

"That, Shane, is called a Half-Breed." The dragon replied. "To explain quickly, they are a species akin to Pokemorphs. However, the genetic ratio is different. With Morphs, they have seventy-five percent Pokemon DNA, and twenty five human. With Breeds, it is the opposite. They still have moves like Morphs, but they aren't quite as durable and take a more human appearance."

I nodded, following his answer up with, "What does that human mean by his insult? Calling the Umbreon a freak?"

At this, Dialga let out a sigh, before telling me, "Because, Shane, history repeats itself." I looked at him, confused, so he continued, "Long ago, back in the days of Shade and the Great War, Breeds did not exist, and humans were rare. The world was populated mostly by Morphs. Somewhere along the line, that changed, and Breeds were created, allowing human population to increase, as a Breed and a human almost always produces a human, but can produce Breeds. So, the world became more diverse. But, with diversity comes bigotry. Eventually, Breeds all but died out, as did Morphs. So, Arceus made an executive decision: scatter the remaining Morphs in the three universes, and confine the Breeds to one."

"Universes?" I questioned, confused.

"I am getting to that." He replied. "So, that happened, but bigotry remained everywhere. So, the different universes took their own ways of avoiding it. One universe began to accept the Morphs, and life became relatively normal. Another changed nothing, leaving the few Morphs and Breeds there to fend for themselves, despite the few people that accepted them. The last one, the one that we all currently reside in, had a safe haven, a region known as Kanto. All of the Morphs in that universe strived to get there, but not all were able. Some suffered through the bigotry, others went into hiding, and others… Others died."

"Died?" I asked, shocked.

Dialga nodded solemnly, telling me, "That universe was the worst off. They had the most Morphs of the two filled with bigotry, and they took to it quite poorly. Many places made it completely legal to kill any Morphs on sight, and even encouraged it. Obviously, there were some sympathizers, but they were few and far in between, outside of Kanto."

"So, what happened?" I questioned.

"The War of the Divided." Darkrai spoke up. "A giant war between two forces, The Warriors, who were contracted by Arceus, and The Darkness, an evil force bent on controlling the universes. We had been keeping The Darkness at bay for thousands of years, but when Arceus felt that we could effectively combine the universes again, bringing them back to what they were, The Darkness invaded, getting into all three at once. So, a war broke out. When it was all over, we combined the universes into the largest of the three, the one containing Kanto."

"And then people went back to being accepting." I guessed. "And we live in that time now. But, later on, they will hate again, and that is what we are seeing."

"Yes." Dialga confirmed. "Now, let us listen."

I nodded, focusing on the scene before me, just in time to see Lino pull a hand gun from his pocket.

"Put that the hell away, Lino!" The Umbreon shouted at him.

"Why the hell should I?" The human asked. "Going to try and take it from me, fag?"

"Damn it, just leave!" The Glaceon shouted, her voice echoing around the park.

Within seconds, a large ball of ice was sent flying at Lino. Before the teen could react, the attack hit him in the face, and he impulsively pulled the trigger, the round flying at the Glaceon. Just before the bullet hit the girl, the Sceptile-Breed moved in front of it, protecting the Glaceon.

"Caius!" She yelled out, shocked.

"No!" The Umbreon called, watching the Sceptile-Breed collapse, blood spreading over his stomach.

As the Glaceon dropped next to Caius, the Umbreon locked his glare on the three teens across from him, wiping their smug expressions off their faces.

"Wrong fucking move!" He shouted, beginning to glow purple.

The Umbreon-Breed behind him froze, before ordering, "Mitch, Haru, grab Caius! Ice, we have to get away! Veil's losing his shit!"

The Luxray-Morph and Mightyena-Breed nodded, quickly grabbing the Sceptile-Breed, while the Umbreon-Breed grabbed the Glaceon's arm. As the five teens made their way to a nearby shop, the Umbreon-Morph's glow intensified, and I noticed a sign starting to rise out of the ground.

"We're getting out of here, now!" Dialga called, quickly creating another portal.

Without hesitating, I dashed in first, ignoring the dizziness. After multiple seconds of keeping my food down, I felt my feet hit something, and I came to a stumbling stop. After my few seconds of dry heaving with my eyes closed, I noticed something.  _Why am I alone?_ I opened my eyes, looking around. Rather than seeing Dialga's room, I saw that I resided in a dark alley, alone.

"Where the hell am I?" I voiced, rising. "Or, better yet, why am I alone?"

After a few seconds of listening, I picked out the sounds of speaking. Seeing no other option, other than stay still, I started for them, intrigued. After a minute or so of walking, I came upon a cellar door with a glowing light above it.

"The mOBSCENE?" I read aloud.

Intrigued, I opened the cellar door, before climbing down the now exposed ladder. At the foot, I stood in a short hall, with a Gengar-Morph in a black suit standing in front of a door at the end, his black shades resting on his ethereal nose. Knowing that he wasn't on the same plane as me, I walked past him, entering the door. Once inside, I was surprised to see that I stood in a rather nice sized club, the lights turned low, save for the ones shining directly onto the stage, where a live band played  _From the Ground_ by Hollywood Undead. I merely stood in the doorway, my eyes fixed on the masked vocalist, watching him move around as he sang, putting on an energetic show, jumping and spinning midair, allowing the audience to join him, even leaping onto a few tables, to which those seated their clapped loudly.

As the song ended, I heard the sound of a portal opening behind me, which I greeted with, "Took you long enough."

"Oh, be quiet." I heard the female Dialga scold me. "Let's go."

I nodded, turning to enter the portal. After the usual dizziness, I was back in Dialga's room, with both of the Legends female now.

I let out a yawn, before telling them, "I guess that I should be going. Thanks, girls. Sorry for not being awake enough to chat.

"It's fine, Shane." Darkrai told me. "You can go."

I nodded, leaving the room.

** P.O.V Change: Darkrai **

* * *

 

As my Champion left, I turned to Dialga, asking her, "Why did you stop me?"

"What do you mean?" She inquired, letting out a sigh as she sat on her bed.

"When Shane asked if you could see the future." I specified. "You told him that you don't see anything involving the victor of this war. You told me the other day that you saw something."

"It was for the best." She told me. "Besides, we don't even know if that will actually happen. It was a very hazy vision."

"But it is better than none." I told her. "You should have told him."

Dialga let out another sigh, before telling me, "Darkrai, think about it. I tell him what I saw, tell him of the victor, and how do you think he may react? He'll know the winner, and become lazy. That could fuck up the results." She flopped back, adding, "Besides, there are still so many variables. Now, come here. I think that I deserve a little treat after what you told him, and I've been dying for another taste."

I smirked at the Legend's lust, complying, climbing over her mouth onto the bed. As she went to work with my clothing, I could help but think about her vision.  _Please, Shane. Please let the vision be true. Please let you lead us to victory._

* * *

**Darkrai and Dialga: ...**

**Link: *Smirks* Like it?**

**Darkrai: You said that you wouldn't put all of our night in there! You said that they weren't going to know about that!**

**Link: Yep.**

**Darkrai: *Deadpans***

**Link: *Smirks* See-yah later Lunar Knights! Stay Sick! I'll try to update next week or so! Sorry for disappearing!**


	17. Extremely Overdramatic. I Love It.

**Holy fuck, new chapter! At four in the motherfucking morning! Okay, I'm so motherfucking sorry for this taking so long, but allow me to explain all that has happened as of late, and why I've been gone. So, it started with me simply wanting to focus on school a little more, try and make better grades, and that worked, so I'm now not failing English. But, when I started trying to write, disaster struck! Y'know how you choose a profile to log in as when you start up a computer? Yeah, my computer decided to start taking upwards of half an hour to go from that to the desktop, and then make me have to fight to open a document. Then, guess what happened. My computer stopped recognizing my flash drive. Yep. Hence why I am currently sitting in my room at four in the morning, half of a Monster next to me, typing on my mother's computer, with the new Hollywood Undead album blasting my ears to pieces with sexiness.**

**Shane: ... You get really hyper when you come out of a depressed state, don't you?**

***A shirtless Sylveon enters the room, sitting on Link's lap***

**Sebastian: He gets really fucking horny, too.**

**Link: *Deadpans* They didn't need to know that, Seb.**

**Sebastian: *Giggles* I know. But my ass certainly knows it.**

**Link: *Growls* I am so fucking punishing you when I'm done here.**

**Sebastian: *Kisses Link's neck* I can't wait.**

**Link: *Sighs* Whatever. Go wait in my room, Seb. I'll be in shortly.**

***Sebastian gets off of Link's lap, giving him a kiss on the cheek, before leaving the room***

**Shane: ... Not asking. Just... Just not fucking asking.**

**Link: Best that you don't, man. Just... Don't... Anyway, onto other stuff that I've been up to over the wait. As Seb said, I've been depressed as fuck, but I'm not quite as bad anymore. I've recently developed a love for both Terraria and Assassin's Creed: Black Flag. Seriously, favorite AC to date, and Terraria is fucking amazing. Looks like a Minecraft clone, but it is a pretty cool RPG-ish game, in all honesty. I've done some shit for school, obviously. Some relationship statuses have changed in my life, such as an old friend being more of an acquaintance now, as he's turning into a douche, seeing as he was flirting with another girl while in a relationship with this pretty cool girl, who he also called a bitch and a slut. Made a Tumblr too, so I'll probably rant there, or something. Not sure. In my bio. I've also acquired both Hollywood Undead's new album, _Day of the Dead_ , as well as All Time Low's  _Future Hearts._ So, yeah, any doubts about picking those up should be dispelled, especially  _DotD._ Absolutely killer. An awesome mix of all that HU is, having rock, some electronic, and some rap on it. They even have a song similar to  _Bullet_ on the deluxe edition,  _I'll Be There._  Y'know, peppy music, but a darker theme. The rap is really well executed, as well. One of my personal favorite parts being near the end of Charlie Scene's part in  _Dark Places_ where he takes on this really amazing Eminem-esqu flow to his lines, and it's absolutely sexy.**

**Shane: Stop reviewing albums and start the chapter.**

**Link: Right. Sorry, got carried away. Anyway, before this starts, two things. First, if you didn't read my one shot, _An Odd Pairing,_ go do that now. It ties in to the story. Second, reviews!**

* * *

**Hero LumiEre Lumanite: Bedtime Shipping? Sounds pretty cool. We're allowed to make these, right? If so, then the Lunar Knights claim Bedtime Shipping! We started it! Everyone else can piss off! Also, I'm not the one who told you to read a lemon in front of your friend's parents. That's your own fault.**

**AGuyWithNoSkills: Hey, hear that? That little noise? That's my email crying for help. Fucking Arceus, man, you blew it the hell up. Not hating, just stating. Like, seriously, a fuck ton of emails.**

* * *

**Extremely Overdramatic. I Love It**

I was brought out of my light sleep by the feeling of being shaken, as well as the voice of a certain Flareon speaking, "C'mon, Shane. Get up. Arceus called an important meeting for the Hall."

I slowly opened my eyes and sat up, shaking my head slowly. I blinked a few times, looking around, seeing that only Shelby came to get me.

"Alright." I told her, getting to my feet. I went to my dresser to grab a shirt, continuing with a question, "Any idea why?"

"Nope." Was the answer. "All she told us is that there's a meeting. Anna may, but I didn't get the chance to ask."

I nodded in response, slipping on one of my standard black tank tops. When I was fully clothed, I grabbed my weapons from their place at the foot of my bed, before causing them to disappear, ready to be called at any time.

"Ready?" She asked me.

"S'go." I replied, nodding slightly.

At my words, we left my room, closing the door behind us.

"Y'know," Shelby began, as we started down the hall, "I still wonder how the hell we're able to do that." I raised an eyebrow, confused at the meaning of her words, so she clarified, "Y'know, with our weapons. Make them appear and disappear at will. Sorta been a thought at the back of my mind."

"Do you really not know?" I asked her, shocked. She shook her head, an intrigued expression on her face, so I explained, "There's actually this giant orb full of some swirly shit hooked up to electricity in Heatran's forge. I saw it when I went to modify our Assassin weapons." I rubbed the back of my head awkwardly, adding, "In all honesty, I had always assumed that it was common knowledge, and I had just never been told for rather obvious reasons."

"No, not really part of the introduction to being a Champion." She informed me. "I honestly doubt that they'd hide it if asked, but they never just come out and say it."

I shrugged as we came to the door of the meeting room, saying, "Meh, I guess there really isn't a full need to tell us where it is."

Upon entering the room, we quickly found our seats next to Darkrai and Zack.

"So, you two know what this is about?" I asked my Champion and Legend.

"Nope." The Zoroark replied. "Sorta hoped that you two would have."

"No idea." Darkrai added. "Not even sure if Anna knows, really." I shot a confused glance at my Legend, so she explained, "Arceus has been extremely reclusive as of late. She doesn't really talk to the other Legends much, and rarely leaves her room at all."

I was about to reply, when the disgruntled voice of the aforementioned Lopunny sounded behind me, "Nope. No fucking idea."

"Oh, stop being so grouchy." Darkrai told her. "It's Christmas, for fuck's sake! Have some fun!"

"Wait, it's Christmas?" I asked, confused.

"Of course." Zack replied, shocked. "Did you forget about it, or something?"

I awkwardly rubbed the back of my head, nervously replying, "Er, sorta. Just been too distracted with training you, I guess. Honestly, I sorta stopped paying attention to the dates after Shelby's birthday."

"Well, it's a good thing that some people remember, I guess." Shelby said. "Honestly, I sorta forgot, too."

Darkrai chuckled, her eyes focused on something behind me, as she said, "Well, I see that someone didn't."

We all turned to follow my Legend's gaze, to see a certain flying pink cat hovering around, a Santa hat over one ear, with a plate of red and green decorated cookies stacked multiple feet high in one hand, and a branch of mistletoe in the other.

"Well, someone likes the holidays." Zack observed, as Mew flew around the room, dropping cookies into people's laps.

"How is that stack of cookies not falling?" Anna questioned, now distracted from her annoyance.

"Magic?" Zack suggested.

"Doubt it." Shelby replied.

"It's Mew." I told them. "I'm convinced that she just doesn't want physics to exist, so it doesn't."

"Seems about right." Darkrai agreed, as we continued watching the energetic cat circle the room. "She really is adorable when she gets in this childish state."

At this moment, Mew flew over us, dropping multiple cookies onto us, gleefully shouting out, "Cookies! Cookies for everyone! Yay!"

I chuckled lightly, grabbing one of the festively decorated cookies off of my lap, before taking a bite out of it, my teeth chomping the frosting Chingling in half.

"Wow, that's good!" Zach complimented, as he took a bite out of his own snack.

"Did you expect anything but?" Mew asked, coming to rest on my shoulder, having finally given cookies to every member in the room, all of which were currently chowing down.

"Not necessarily." My Champion replied. "Just an observation."

Mew chuckled quietly, telling him, "Well, I accept the compliment. Thank you."

We sat there for another minute or so, making small talk and eating our cookies, until our eyes were brought to the door by the sound of someone approaching. We all watched in silence as Arceus entered the room, her appearance giving off the same aura of elegance as always. Except for one detail: her eyes. I felt my brow furrow with worry as I caught sight of the dark bags under her bloodshot eyes.  _She hasn't been sleeping well. And has she been… Crying?_ I glanced around the room, noticing that only one other person had noticed this detail. I raised an eyebrow at Darkrai, and she returned my worried look.

I mouthed out, "Any idea what's bothering her?"

"No." She mouthed back. "Want me to try and check on her after this?"

I nodded back, replying, "Thanks."

She returned the nod, and we refocused our attention on our sleep-deprived leader.

"This morning, the Organization made a public statement on international television." She began, holding a remote in her hand. "In it, they addressed their harsh treatment and poor economic choices, as well as the lack of freedom they give the citizens of the world. So, they decided to try and apologize for it."

She said no more, instead clicking a button on the remote, causing the lights to dim and the large screens to come down. We watched as the screens turned on, flicking to a recording of a news report featuring an Ariados dressed in a black suit, standing in front of a large building with neon lights decorating it. The play button was hit, and the news report started playing.

"We are here with a higher up at the Organization," a female voice introduced, "as he shares some very welcome news to us all."

"Thank you, Ma'am." The Ariados said, nodding. "I am here, standing before one of the most recent additions to Black Mesa: The Blackout." I raised my eyebrow as the spider continued, "As of late, we have more than noticed the issues that we have inadvertently caused our wonderful citizens. We understand that life is hard for you, and we are terribly sorry for that. So, in an effort to both apologize, and make life easier, we have decided to revert life back some. We have now raised the pay of all of our employees, as well as lowered taxes. We have also built new night clubs in every major city, so that all of our citizens may have places to go and mingle, and have fun."

He looked as if he was going to continue, but Arceus chose this point to pause the recording.

"As you can see," the Legend started, "the Organization has decided to make some spending changes."

"I doubt that it can mean anything good." Articuno put in.

"My thoughts exactly." Arceus agreed. "The way I see it, this can only mean one of two things. Either they really have turned over a new leaf, which we all know is highly unlikely, or they are they trying to throw our recent allies, the Assassins, off their trail."

"Oddly enough, my money is on the second one." Giratina said.

"Exactly." Arceus told her, nodding. "Which is why I have decided that we have not done as much as we should have been doing. From now on, we shall start sending out more missions, taking out more of the Organization, and working harder to liberate the world."

"We finally get to start doing shit?" Chelsea asked, the Arcanine not even making an attempt to hide the excitement in her voice.

"Yes." The Legend replied. "But, if we are to do this, we will need to be highly organized, and well trained. Therefore, after much consideration, I have decided to appoint a second in command. Someone who shall work with you all, setting up training and mission, and report back to me."

At this announcement, I saw surprised and intrigued faces paint the room, with multiple Legends scooting up to sit on the edge of their seats, most notably Moltres and Entei. Arceus closed her eyes, taking a deep breath, obviously steadying herself, preparing for the reaction she'll get from those not chosen.  _If I had to guess, she'll pick Moltres. After all, Chelsea was the best Champion here for quite a while._

Our leader opened her eyes slowly, before calmly saying one simple word, "Shane."

The room went completely silent. Not a single fucking noise was made. Until, of course, everyone's favorite overcooked dinner spoke up.

"What?" The pheonix asked, that one word dripping with enough poison to kill an army.

"You heard me." Arceus said. "Shane shall be my second in command."

This time, Moltres barely let Arceus finish speaking, before starting to shout, "What the hell, Arceus? You chose that waste of flesh over me! That inexperienced bastard that has never even gone on a mission before! What the fucking hell?"

Moltres continued her rant, until Arceus calmly, yet loudly, interjected, "Moltres, would you kindly shut the fuck up?"

This caused the rambling pheonix to go completely silent, her beak clamping shut immediately.

"Moltres, did you even pay any attention to what you were just saying?" The white deer asked. "Allow me to answer that myself: no, you didn't, and you never do. That is one reason why I could never have you in any position of power. You are too stupid for your own good. You have no compassion or respect for anyone. You just started yelling at me, your leader, because you can't accept the fact that I have appointed someone far more skilled than you could ever be to help lead, rather than yourself, only because you can't accept defeat, and you cannot accept change. You continue to hate Shane and insult his ability, even after he has bested a team of our best fighters in battle, merely because you can't look past your blind bigotry to see that he is a valuable resource to our cause. You can't do something that even your Champion has been able to do." I noticed Moltres send a shocked glare down at the now cowering Chelsea, but Arceus continued, "You get so annoyed whenever I don't follow your desires, because you don't realize that that isn't my purpose. My purpose is to liberate the world, yet you only appear to be focused on gaining fame and praise. Moltres, we try to be heroes here, not celebrities. We don't do it for the fame, we do it for the cause. Maybe you should look at the Assassins for a lesson in this. They wear masks. They get no fame."

Arceus finally stopped talking, leaving the room in an eery silence. Without a word, Moltres left her seat, before storming out of the room. This time, it was multiple minutes before the silence was broken, this time by Moltres icey sister.

"Lady Arceus," Articuno began, "I completely understand why you didn't choose Moltres, and I have nothing against Shane, but do you really think that putting him in this position is really a smart idea? I mean, he's still only a child, and he has never been out in the field."

Arceus looked over at the Legend, telling her, "Articuno, trust me on this, he has seen more in the short time that he has been here than most of the other Champions have seen in their time here."

Articuno's expression became one of confusion, as she replied, "I don't see how, as he has never really left the Hall. Besides, are you sure that he can properly strategize to do this?"

"I'm sure that he can." Arceus told her.

_Okay, this is getting annoying._

"Would you mind not talking about me as if I'm in another room?" I inquired, finally speaking up. "I'm right fucking here."

Arceus hesitated momentarily, before saying, "Very true. Shane, how do you feel about this assignment? Are you willing to take it?"

I froze, thinking over my situation and possible decisions. I shot quick glances to my friends surrounding me, only to find no help or advice in their eyes.

I took a deep breath, coming to a decision, before replying, "I will gladly accept this position, Lady Arceus. I thank you for bestowing this honor upon me, and I shall try my hardest to not fail you."

The white deer nodded back at me, before telling everyone, "Then it is decided. Shane is now my second in command. You all may take today off, as it is a holiday, but be prepared to train and go on missions starting tomorrow." Her eyes flicked onto me, adding, "And I'd like to see you sometime before dinner, so we may discuss the upcoming week's plans."

I nodded to her, and she left the room, leaving it in silence. It took me a few seconds, but I eventually noticed that every single eyes was locked onto me. I suddenly became extremely nervous, feeling myself start to panic.

Thankfully, Mewtwo came to my rescue, saying, "You heard her, everyone. We have the day off, so we should try our best to enjoy it." With that, she got to her feet, heading for the door, saying, "If anyone would like to join me, I do believe that I shall make some hot chocolate and watch movies in the cafeteria. The invitation is open."

She then left the room, leaving us back in silence. After she left, the room slowly began emptying, keeping me from fully freaking the fuck out. After a minute or so, the only beings remaining in the room were myself, Shelby, Zach, Darkrai, Anna, Mew, Dialga, Articuno, and Chelsea. As soon as I was sure that no one was left in the hall, I did the first thing that came to mind: slammed my forehead into the table in front of me.

"Fuck." I groaned out, hearing gasps of surprise from the occupants of the room. I then lifted my head up, before slamming it back down, repeating the process multiple times, each hit emphasized with an exclamation of "Fuck!"

When the beginnings of a headache started forming, I felt a hand grip my shoulder, followed the voice of Shelby saying, "Shane, please stop. Hurting yourself won't do anything."

"Unless I knock myself out." I told her. "Then I don't have to be a responsible person for a while."

"Shane, just sit up." Anna told me, pulling me up by my shoulder.

When I was back up, I saw that Dialga, Articuno, and Chelsea had joined my group, the Legends standing on the other side of the table, with Chelsea sitting cross-legged on it.

"Holy fucking shit, I fucked the hell up." I sighed out. "What the fucking hell have I fucking done?"

"Accepted an extremely important job." Zach informed me, earning a glare from Shelby.

"I've made such a giant mistake." I said. "I'm nowhere near ready for this."

"You don't have much faith in yourself, do you?" Chelsea observed.

"You act like you helped that." I growled out, earning an embarrassed look at the floor from the Arcanine.

"Calm down, Shane." Dialga scolded me. "Don't start snapping at everyone."

I sighed, agreeing, "Right. Sorry, Chels, just annoyed. Why the fuck did I accept this? I can't do this."

"Wrong." Anna spoke up. "You can't do this alone."

"Same thing." I told her.

"Not necessarily." Darkrai corrected me. "You can't do this alone, but you can do it. You just need some help."

I looked at my Legend, shocked, before asking, "Are you offering what I think you are?"

She nodded, telling me, "Shane, if anyone can do this, it's you. You just need some help."

"Which is where we come in." Articuno said, reaching out her arm, holding her hand in the center of our group.

"Are you guys seriously going to do this?" I asked, as Darkrai's hand joined Articuno's.

"Of course." Mew told me, sliding off of my head and onto the table. She put her paw on top of Darkrai's hand, adding, "What are friends for?"

Dialga's hand was the next to join the pile, as she said, "It is my duty to keep you from fucking anything up while training Zach, so I'm more than obligated to assist."

Shelby's came next, with the words, "Hell, I'd follow you to the end of the earth."

A Zoroark hand quickly joined the stack, Zach adding with it, "You're cocky as fuck, and really persistent when training me, almost to the point of annoyance, but you are still my friend, and I can't let you do this on your own."

"I'm in." Anna told us, her fluffy hand being added. "Other than you being my friend, you're also helping my Legend, so it sorta falls in the job description."

All our eyes shifted to Chelsea, watching the Arcanine.

She sighed quietly, before saying, "Well, you are the best fighter here, and a good friend, seeing as you actually let me be your friend, instead of a corpse. And, well, now that Moltres knows that we're friends, I highly doubt that she'll let me be her Champion anymore." She put her hand in the center, adding, "I'm sorta convinced that this will go horribly wrong, but fuck it, if it blows up, it blows up in all of our faces."

I hesitated a moment as all eyes fell on me, before asking, "You all know what you're agreeing to, right? This won't be easy, and we all know that the others aren't really happy about this."

"Who the fuck cares what the others think?" Darkrai retorted. "If I gave a fuck, I wouldn't have brought you here in the first place, and you'd just be a corpse at the bottom of a tower."

I quickly blinked away a few tears that I hadn't previously noticed, before adding my hand to the pile.

"Thank you all, so much." I told them. "I could never ask this of any of you."

"Then it's a good thing that we are doing this on our own." Anna said.

"I feel like we need a team name." Zach pointed out.

"Any ideas?" Chelsea asked.

"The Unholy Warriors?" Darkrai suggested.

"Extremely overdramatic." I told her. "I love it."

"Break on three?" Mew asked.

"One." Zach started.

"Two." Shelby continued.

"Three." I finished.

"Break!" We all called, throwing our hands in the air.

* * *

**Guys like the chapter? Hope so. If not, well, I apologize. This was actually meant to be longer, but I decided to split it into two different chapters, as they are pretty different. So, that one will come out either this week, or the next. Hopefully. No promises. I mean, with how I currently have to write... Yeah. Sorry. Anyway, before I go, I actually have a semi-special announcement to make. As of March 18, 2015, AGuyWithNoSkills officially pushed this story into the triple digits of favorites. We've been past 100 in follows for a little bit now, but a favorite is far more special, and I am so fucking ecstatic that we hit this number. Seriously, it's fucking amazing. To know that 100 of you guys love this story enough to make it a favorite blows my fucking mind. It's essentially the same feeling I got when I realized that we have almost 300 Lunar Knights in total. I don't actually how much a "large" following is on here, but this is more than I could have ever asked for. I fucking love all of you motherfuckers. Now, I'm out, guys. Got a naughty Sylveon to punish.**

**Stay sick, motherfuckers!**


	18. New Drugs and Newer Allies

** New Drugs and Newer Allies **

I stepped out of Arceus’s room, closing the door slowly, before sliding down the wall, sighing as I sat down.

“Son of a bitch.” I sighed out, annoyed. “Son of a fucking bitch.”

I heard a few footsteps come around the corner up ahead, before being asked, “What’s up?”

I looked up at the Flareon next to me, before patting the floor to my right, inviting her to join me.

As Shelby sat down next to me, I sighed once more, telling her, “I’ve just been stressed as hell since Arceus put me in charge of missions and shit.”

She pulled me into a tight hug, agreeing, “Yeah, I’ve noticed that.You haven’t been sleeping, have you?”

“Not really.” I responded. “It’s just so fucking hard. I mean, I was hoping that we could actually get some missions out, but due to the fact that the others aren’t anywhere near ready for real combat, we’ve only been able to do a few recon missions, with everyone else having to train daily.” Shelby pulled me closer, and I added, “And fucking Moltres isn’t wanting to work. Her, Entei, and fucking Groudon won’t do anything that I tell them. Hell, even the Eons will follow orders!”

“Groudon?” Shelby inquired. “I didn’t even know that she hates you.”

“Nor did I, in all honesty.” I agreed. “But, she does. And none of them will do what I tell them.”

“What about Groudon’s Champion?” The Flareon asked me. “Breann?”

“She sometimes listens.” I replied, thinking back over the Braixen’s reactions over the week. “But only if she’s not with Groudon. Other than that, everyone listens, whether they like me or not.”

“Well, at least there is that.” My girlfriend told me, resting her head on my shoulder, as I wrapped my arm around her. There were a few minutes of silence, before she spoke up, “Shane? I bet I know that can help you unwind some.”

I raised my eyebrow, asking, “Oh? I beg of thee, inform me.”

She chuckled, telling me, “Well, it is about time that we get our new recruit. We’ve waited too long for that.”

A small smile crossed my face, as I replied, “Alright. Just let me grab some coffee, then we can go.”

* * *

** P.O.V Change: Zack **

I continued walking through the woods around the Hall, covering my mouth with my hand as I let out yet another yawn. Son of a bitch. Why the hell couldn’t I get to sleep. As I continued walking, I began feeling as if I was being watched, causing my fur to stand on end.

“Hello?” I called out, coming to a halt. “Is anyone there?”

I paused, awaiting an answer, scanning my surroundings.

When I received none, I activated my Roulette Gloves, causing a large greatsword to spawn in my hands, as I shouted, “Whoever is there, come the hell out! I can and will kick your ass!”

I heard a small chuckle, followed by a hidden voice replying, “I doubt that.”

I growled lowly, answering, “Then come out and face me!”

This time, there was no response, angering me anymore. Before I could shout again, I heard something drop to the ground behind me, followed by a sharp pain on the back of my head, knocking me out.

* * *

** P.O.V Change: X **

“We’re almost there, friend.” The Zangoose morph in the front of the van told me, before taking another puff on his cigarette.

I nodded to our driver, before turning back to Y and the unconscious form on the floor of the van.

“Think we should wake him up?” My partner asked me, nodding to the form on the floor.

“Possibly.” I replied, shrugging. “Or we could let him sleep a bit.”

Y sighed, as I heard a groan come from the person at our feet.

As he began sitting up, I commented, “Well, it appears that that issue solved itself.”

The Zoroark slowly rose up, looking around in confusion, before groggily asking, “Where the hell am I?”

“Doesn’t matter right now.” I replied, unclipping a mask from my belt. I threw it to him, adding, “Put this on.”

He caught the mask, examining the red “Z” painted on the front. Upon seeing it, he looked up at Y and I, a look of shock on his face.

“Holy shit.” The Zoroark gasped, his mouth agape.

I sighed, commanding, “What did I just fucking say, kid? Put it the fuck on!”

He jumped slightly at my raised voice, before hastily sliding the mask on.

“Good job, Z.” I told him, reaching down to a hoodie next to me. I threw the clothing at him, telling him, “Now this.”

He slipped the hoodie on immediately, flipping the hood on without having to be told to do so.

“You’re learning.” I commented, smirking behind my mask. “I’m proud, kid.”

“Er, thanks, I guess.” He replied, his eyes locked on me.

I nodded to him, asking Y, “Got his gun?”

“Of course.” She replied, reaching into the corner behind her. She pulled out a black shotgun and gave it to me, adding, “Here you go.”

I nodded back at her, holding the gun in both hands, before returning my gaze to Z.

“Know what this is?” I asked him.

“Er, a gun?” He cautiously answered.

I chuckled, replying, “Technically, yes. But I mean any form of specs for it. Like the model, or anything.” He shook his head, so I informed him, “This is a Remington 870. It’s a 12 gauge, pump action shotgun.” I flipped it to show the bottom of it, continuing, “Loads shells in the bottom, ejects the empty ones from the side. But, due to some special modifications, you won’t have to worry about lack of ammo.” I took it in both hands, before throwing it to Z, who barely caught it, before adding, “Pump it after each shot. Any questions?”

“A couple.” He responded. “First off, what the hell am I doing here?”

“I’ll explain that when we get to the destination.” I replied, next one.

“Well, I’ve never really killed anyone before.” He told us. “So, knowing your guys’ work, that may be an issue.”

I rolled my eyes, replying, “You’ll learn. You can just sit back and watch this mission, if you want.”

He was about to reply, when our driver interrupted with, “Hey, we’re here!”

I felt the van come to a skidding stop, causing Y to stumble into me.

I caught her, putting her on her feet, as she told me, “Thanks.”

I nodded back at her, before commanding Z, “Now, get up. We have a job to do.”

As he scrambled to his feet, I moved to the back of the van. I threw the doors open, before stepping out into the dark streets of snow covered Black Mesa. I moved to the front of the van as my companions leapt out of the van, coming over to the driver’s side window.

“Thanks for the lift, Rico.” I told the Zangoose.

“No problem, yah.” He replied, nodding sharply, his cigarette bouncing between his lips. “Besides, doubt I’ll ever be able to fully pay you back. You saved my life so many times now.”

I chuckled quietly, telling him, “Well, I’ll be sure to call on your assistance any time we need a ride. Best damn driver in all of Mesa.”

He laughed rather loudly, adding, “And don’t you forget it!”

I chuckled again, finally saying, “Now, Rico, if I were you, I’d get scarce. You don’t wanna be in the Mesa when we get in there. The shit that place holds, not to mention the people in there, every Organization member in the city limits will be on this place in seconds, should we get caught.”

“A’ight, bruv.” He replied, nodding. “Remember, your escape vehicle is two blocks west, in the alley next to the old library. Key’s in the ignition. One of you can drive, right?”

“Not the best.” Y told him, coming over to me. “But I should be able to get us out.”

“Cool, my friend.” He said, tapping his claws on the steering wheel of the van. “But, I’ll tell you what. Whenever you want driving lessons, call on me, and I’ll be happy to give them. Sound cool?”

“Awesome!” Y replied, her voice giddy. “I’ll remember that.”

As Z came to join us, I told Rico, “Alright, I’d bail now, if I were you.” I looked up at the moon, estimating it to be about five in the morning, before adding, “We’re on a schedule, and we need to be done before dawn.”

He nodded, telling us, “Got it. I’m out, guys. G’luck.”

I nodded back at him, as he hit the gas and sped down the white street. My eyes moved to the building that was behind the van, scanning all twenty five levels of the building.

I silently led my partners to the building, as Z asked, “So, what’s the deal with this place, exactly?”

“It’s a manufacturing building.” I replied. I glanced over at him, before adding, “Dismiss your gun. Don’t need to go in shooting everyone up.” He looked at me, confused, so I told him, “Just think about it being gone.” After a few seconds, his gun disappeared, followed by me saying, “Good. And don’t use those gloves, either. If shit hits the fan, guns only.”

He nodded, the confusion evident on his face, but he instead chose to ask, “So, what’s manufactured here?”

“Mostly guns.” Y replied.

“But that isn’t all.” I added. “Recently, the Organization has begun the production and distribution of synthetic drugs.”

“Seriously?” Z asked, shocked.

“Yep.” I told him, coming to a stop at the foot of the steps leading up to the glass doors, staying out of the light. “Mostly the usual ones you can find on the streets; y’know, pills and shit. Been making them cheap, and slipping them in water supplies around the world. People drink the water, it gets them addicted to the drug, but they don’t know that it’s there. So, the Organization then stops putting it in the water after a month or so, just long enough to get the people hooked. Then, after a couple of weeks, withdrawal sets in. Shakes, vomiting, restlessness, all sorts of shit. But, the people think that they just have some disease going around. So, the Organization rolls in with more pills, saying that it’s a cure for the shit that ails them. Charge exorbitant prices for them, but people buy it. I mean, no one wants to have to watch their seven year old kid go through that shit, right? So, the people stay addicted, and the Organization gets more money.”

“Damn.” He commented, stunned. “How did you figure this out?”

I thought back to a few weeks ago, when I was forced to reveal our identities to our tech. Arceus, she was confused. Sorta pissed, as well. Glad to have her on our side, though. She’s damn intelligent, and she’s sure to help even more than she already does.

“Let’s just say that we have friends.” I told him. “Now, Y, got the cutter?”

She reached into her pocket, pulling out a small metal pad, as she replied, “Yep. Good to go.”

I nodded, as Z asked, “Er, shouldn’t I know the plan?”

“Take to long to explain, kid.” I told him, stepping into the light. “Just follow us, and do as you’re told.” The other two stayed at the foot of the steps, watching me as I spoke, “E, patched into the building’s electricity?”

“Almost.” He replied, the concentration audible in his voice as it came from the mic in my mask. After a few more seconds, he said, “Got it. Full control has been achieved.”

“Nice.” I complimented him, as we reached the top step. “M, got the schematics up?”

“Hell yeah, bro.” She replied, followed by the sound of her sipping coffee. “Now, let’s get this show on the road. You have about three hours to do your shit, so get to work.”

I nodded, holding up my fist, signaling for Z and Y to wait behind me. I moved up to the glass door, my eyes shifting to the floor, as I noticed a sole guard, a rather bulky, dark skinned male clad in the usual uniform of a black suit and black sunglasses, sitting at a front desk, his feet kicked up.

“E, lobby cameras.” I said.

My words were met with silence, before, “Got ‘em. Thirty second limit, then they’re coming back. Don’t want the guy monitoring them to get suspicious.”

I nodded to him, before rapping on the glass door. I watched from under my hood as the guard looked up at me, his eyes narrowed.

“Go away!” He shouted across the room.

I knocked again.

“Whatever the hell you’re selling, I don’t want any!” He called back.

I knocked. This time, he got up, before angrily moving to the door. As he came closer, I put my hands behind my back, gripping the knife in my belt with my right one.

When he reached the door, he asked, “What the hell do you want, kid? Can’t you see that I don’t want whatever you’re selling.”

I attempted to put on my most innocent voice possible, hoping that it would work, as I told him, “I’m not selling anything, mister. I just need help.”

“Help?” He returned, confused. “With what?”

“My pet Eevee.” I replied. “He got out of the house, and ran off. I followed him, and I think that he went through the window into a room off of this lobby.”

“Too bad, kid.” He told me. “I can’t let you in.”

“Please.” I begged, resisting the urge to be sick. “Mr. Whiskers is my family’s first pet, and one of the only things that makes my mom smile anymore.”

He looked at me for a few seconds, seeming to be in an internal struggle, before he sighed, conceding, “Fine, kid. But make it quick. I could get in serious trouble for this.”

He reached over to a keypad next to the door and typed something in, before pulling the door open.

“Now, hurry.” He told me, holding the door open.

I stepped through the door, my head down, hiding my mask. The guard went to close the door, but before he could, I shot my hand out, imbedding the knife in his stomach. The man doubled over, his hands going to the blade in his stomach, as he gasped sharply.

“What the hell?” He choked out, looking up at me.

I looked back, a smile creeping across my face at his expression when he saw my mask, as I asked, “Didn’t your mother ever teach you to not open the door for strangers?”

With that, I pulled the blade from his stomach, before sending it into his temple, ending his life quickly.

“E, down time?” I asked.

“Ten seconds.” Was the response.

“Give me ten more.” I told her, as I picked up the body of the guard, making sure that the marble tile floor stayed clean.

I quickly moved the body to a supply closet on the right wall, opening it before tossing the body in.

“Ten seconds.” E warned me, as I went to the door.

I motioned to my comrades, who were standing at the foot of the stairs, telling them, “Let’s go.”

They moved up the stairs quickly, joining me in the lobby.

“Five seconds.” Came a warning, just as I closed the main door.

I quickly dashed across the lobby, Z and Y following, before mashing the button to call the elevator.

It arrived quickly, and we all got in and closed the door, just as E said, “They’re up.”

I let out a sigh of relief as I pressed the correct button, saying, “Shit, that was close.”

“You’re telling me.” Came M’s voice.

“Oh, be quiet.” I scolded her, scoffing. “You aren’t actually out in the field, doing this shit.”

“That’s because, while I am an alright fighter, I’m far more useful back here.” She countered. “Besides, I’m still working on finishing up Z’s microphone rig for his mask.”

“Then why are you sitting there, eating ramen?” E asked her.

There was a slight hiss, and a scrambling sound, over the headset, followed by M saying, “Damn it, E! Stop hacking my cameras!”

“It’s not hacking if you gave me access.” The boy pointed out.

“Oh, will you three stop bickering?” Y sighed out. “Seriously, you guys act like siblings sometimes.”

“Very well.” E replied. “Also, X, did you not even think about the entryway back there?”

“What do you mean?” I asked, as the floor counter flicked to show a ten.

“You didn’t tell me to take out the cameras on the steps.” He told me. “You’re just lucky that I thought about them.”

“In all honesty, I didn’t know about them.” I said. “Thanks for saving our asses back there.”

“No prob.” Came the joint reply of M and E.

I rolled my eyes, watching the floor counter slowly increase.

“M, you know which room we’re going to?” Y asked her.

“Of course, girl.” She replied, a joking tone in her voice. “Never doubt me. Ever.”

“Which is it, then?” I inquired.

“The biggest one, duh.” She told me. Just go down the main hall and take a right. Then it’s the door straight ahead. A couple of cameras, but E can take care of them easily.”

“Yep.” He agreed. “Still find it odd that there aren’t any cameras in the elevator.”

“I’ve stopped questioning them, in all honesty.” Y commented, as we hit our floor.

As the door slowly opened, I ordered, “E, first cameras.”

After a second of waiting, he replied, “Forty five seconds. Move quickly.”

We moved quickly and quietly, making sure not to make too much sound as we made our way to the fork in the hall.

“E, camera set two.” I told her, as the three of us turned the corner.

“Done.” She replied quickly.

As we hurried down the hall, Z asked me, “So, what are we going to do when we get to wherever we’re going?”

“Leave that up to us.” I told him. “Easier than explaining it.”

“What are we doing about the cameras in there?” Y asked. “It’ll take a few minutes to get everything finished.”

“I’ll be taking down the cameras permanently.” E replied.

“What?” Y almost shouted, shocked. “But that’ll get the Organization onto us.”

“Why do you think I told him to do it?” I retorted. “We’ll be able to take out this building, as well as a lot of Organization soldiers. It’s a win-win.”

“Nice one, X.” M complimented me. “Hadn’t really thought of that.”

“That’s because you aren’t stupidly risky like him.” Y commented.

I rolled my eyes in minor amusement, as we came to the door.

“Alright,” I said, as we stopped outside of it, “E, hit the cameras. We go in quietly, see if he’s busy, or something. Try and catch him off guard.”

The others nodded, as E told me, “Done. Cameras are dead.”

“Nice.” I complimented him, as I placed my hand on the doorknob. “M, you have the controls ready?”

“Had ‘em ready for a while now, boyo.” She told me.

I nodded to the others, before slowly opening the door. As we entered, I saw that the boss was sitting in a large chair behind his desk, his back to us, looking out the window, a phone to his ear.

“Oh yeah, this shit is gold.” The man said, as I noticed his stinger sticking up above the chair, as well as an open silver case on his desk.

Ariados, just as the intel said. Damn, M, you never disappoint. We moved in slowly, making a half circle around the boss, making sure to stay out of his sight.

I stood in the center, in front of his desk, as he said told the person on the phone, “I’m telling you, man, this case is pure gold. We’ve really improved on the Sylphos, and it has some of the new shit, the Tempus Spiss, or whatever it’s called.” There was the sound of a voice over the phone, followed by the Ariados offhandedly saying, “Yeah, Tempus Spissamentum, what the hell ever. I’m not a fucking scientist, I just force them to work.” More words from the phone, before, “Hell no, I don’t keep those fucking brainiacs here. They tell my boys the recipe, and then I send them to a camp. Fuck, they can be so annoying.” The phone spoke again, followed by, “Yeah, night man. See yah.”

He hung up his phone, before sliding it into his pocket. He let out a loud sigh, slumping back in his chair. As he relaxed, I summoned my pistols, followed by Y summoning her SMG and Z summoning his shotgun. I cleared my throat, aiming one gun directly at the chair.

The Ariados hissed slightly, before spinning around and hissing out, “For the final fucking time tonight, stop fucking both-.”

He broke off upon seeing us, his suddenly frightened eyes moving up to my mask.

“H-Holy shit.” He stuttered out. “P-Please, n-no. Don’t shoot. Please. I’ll tell you whatever you want to know.”

I thought about his offer, before replying, “The case. What’s in it?”

He leaned up to the case and spun it around, letting it face me. In it, I saw eight columns of vials, the left side a toxic red, and the right a deep blue. I did some quick math, telling me that there were twenty vials of each.

“What are they?” I asked him, motioning from him to the case with my gun.

“The red is our improved Sylphos, the drug we’ve been making for a while now.” The spider told me nervously. “We’ve made it to where the high lasts a shorter time, but the withdrawal effects are much worse. They set in quicker, and hurt more.”

“And the blue?” Y interrogated him.

“That’s Tempus Spiss.” He informed us. “A new drug that we made. It’s meant to slow down the heart rate of the user, allowing them to experience anything much slower. To them, it feels like the world moves at one percent of the actual speed. They feel happiness, it lasts much longer, and it feels much stronger. Sadness, same thing. We intend to use it as a follow up to the Sylphos, increasing the pain and shit from the withdrawal. Now, please, let me live.”

I smirked at the Ariardos, letting out a dark chuckle, as I asked, “Did you really think that we’d let you get out of here alive?”

At my words, the spider’s expression turned from one of terror, to a mortified one, his eyes growing even wider. Before he could speak, I pulled the trigger on my Desert Eagle, sending his brain flying out of a hole in the back of his head.

With that done, I shut the case, barking out, “Y, get the cutter on the window. Z, grab the filing cabinets on the wall over there and move them in front of the door.” Y got to work quickly, but Z stayed frozen, prompting me to ask, “Z, what the hell? Move!”

“Y-You just killed that guy.” He stuttered out, shocked. “He was begging and everything. But you just shot him.”

“Yeah, I did.” I agreed, clipping the metal case of drugs to my belt. “He fucking deserved it. Now, do as I fucking said.”

He stayed frozen for a few more moments, his eyes locked onto me, before finally complying, moving to block the door.

“Yo, X!” Y shouted at me from the window. “Guys arriving already.”

I dashed over to the window, looking out to see humvees and transport trucks roll up to the building, the headlights illuminating the snow.

“Shit!” I shouted, smashing my fist into the glass, yet causing no damage to the thick material. “Y, how’s the cutter going?”

“Just set it up.” She told me, standing up. “It’ll be done in two to three minutes.”

“Got it.” I told her, as I kicked the office chair with the dead Ariados out of the way. I flipped the desk over, knocking the computer and office supplies off, before shouting to Z, “Z, get back here! Take cover behind the desk.”

He glanced back at me, nodding as he moved the last cabinet in front of the door. He ran back to us, leaping over the desk, taking cover behind it with Y and I.

“E, ETA with the soldiers?” Y asked.

“Five or so minutes.” He replied. “I cut the elevator power to slow them down. They’re on the stairs.”

“Nice.” My partner complimented the boy.

“M, ready with the drone for when the cutter is done?” I asked.

“Of course.” She told me. “How much longer?”

Y turned to check the timer on the cutter, before replying, “Two and a half minutes.”

“Alright.” M replied. “It’ll take me about five minutes to get it there. Another five to set up the charge remotely.”

“Will it have their hooks with it?” I asked her.

“In a bag on it.” She answered. “Remember, just put it on as a bracelet, and press the button with your wrist. X, you already have yours, so you know what to do.”

“Why do I feel like you’re getting instructions that I should here?” Z asked me.

“When we get the bracelets, put them on.” Y instructed. “It’s a grappling hook. Press the button with your wrist. Press it once to shoot the hook out, a second time to retract it.”

Z nodded, as E warned us, “They’re in the halls! They moved faster than I thought.”

“Y, cutter done?” I asked.

She and I both turned around, just to watch the cutter fall off, a large circle of class clinging to it.

“We’re good.” Y told M. “Bring the drone.”

“On it.” Our home tech replied.

“Why didn’t we just shoot the glass?” Z asked.

“Too thick.” I responded. “The bullets would bounce, before they would break it.”

“Damn.” He commented, as we heard footsteps out in the hall.

“Hurry it up, M.” I requested. “Don’t wanna lose my gift, do you?”

“A gift?” She inquired.

“You heard what he was saying about the drugs, right?” I asked her.

“You’re bringing them back?” She replied, intrigued. “Fuck yes! Awesome! Thanks, man!”

“Er, why is that awesome?” E asked us.

“Are you kidding me?” M responded. “It’s fucking amazing! I can reverse synthesise the drugs to find out what they’re made of, and possibly make a cure for them.”

“Then, the three of us can go in and administer them.” Y added. “But leaving them in the houses of the people, putting it in the water, whatever we can do.”

“I really am not fond of you guys talking to others about me without me being able to hear it.” Z commented, as I heard banging on the door.

“Fine then.” I said. “E, wanna come out?”

“Sure.” He replied, as a small red rift appeared in front of me. The small holographic boy appeared before us, adding, “If it makes Z feel better.”

“Happy now?” I asked the teen.

“Er, I’m not sure.” He replied. “Didn’t really expect a hologram.”

“Well, that’s what he is.” Y told Z.

“Yep.” I followed up. “Now, E, how about some music?” I watched as the filing cabinets fell down from the repetitive abuse against the door, and I added, “It appears that they’re about to break in.”

“Of course, X.” He said. “Any preferences?”

“Just something fun to shoot to.” I requested.

After a few seconds, Machines by Modestep started playing from my belt, causing a smile to creep across my face.

“Good choice?” E asked me.

“Oh, hell yeah.” I responded, as the final filing cabinets fell down.

Within seconds, the door burst open, with two soldiers following it.

“Fire.” I calmly said, aiming at the two men and pulling the triggers.

As the two men dropped, Y unleashed a flurry of bullets at the door, causing a few groans of pain as the rounds pierced through the thin wood surrounding it, hitting the soldiers that had stacked up.

“Z, fucking fire!” I shouted, as a soldier burst in, before catching an MP5 round.

“I-I’ve never killed anyone.” He told me. “I’m not sure if I can!”

I groaned in annoyance, telling him, “Then just aim at the door and fire! Don’t think of it as killing people, it’s just shooting at a fucking door!”

“Guys, hate to interrupt, but we have an issue!” M called out.

“What now?” I asked, as my partners kept shooting at the door blindly.

“Two helos hovering outside.” She told me. “They’ll drop the drone as soon as I get in the airspace.”

I looked outside, confirming her words.

“Shit!” I shouted in annoyance. I sighed, saying, “Z and Y, you two stay here and hold down the fort. I’ll slip out through the hole from the cutter and take out the choppers.”

“Then go!” Y shouted back, as the Organization soldiers began returning fire, signaled by a bullet flying over my head.

I nodded to her, before moving over to the hole in the glass. I got on the floor and slipped through, just barely fitting out. I quickly got to my feet on the small ledge outside, looking at one of the helicopters, noticing that it’s design is one for troop transport, despite the mounted miniguns on both sides. I shot a quick glance at the other once, confirming that they are both the same model, before refocusing on the first one. As I watched, the gunner on my side noticed me, prompting him to swivel his gun to point at me.

“Shit.” I sighed out, as I saw the gun begin to spin up.

I aimed my wrist at the helicopter, shooting off my grappling hook. The hook fired out, connecting with the bottom of the chopper. Without thinking, I leapt off of the ledge, sending me to a hanging position below the helicopter. I quickly began swinging back and forth, attempting to gain momentum. When I felt that I had gained enough speed, I swung upwards, flying up next to the other side of the helicopter. The gunner looked at me, stunned, before I nailed him in the forehead with a shot from my free hand. His companion turned around to look at me, but before he could do anything, I retracted the hook, sending me falling. Before falling to low, I reached out and grabbed the edge of the helicopter, before scrambling into the vehicle. As the second gunner scrambled to his feet, I simply kicked him in the chest, sending him flying out of the chopper.

I chuckled lowly, taunting him, “This is Mesa, motherfucker.”

I moved to the cockpit of the helicopter, where I saw that the pilot and copilot hadn’t heard me taking down the gunners. I used this to my advantage, placing the barrels of my guns to their heads, before pulling the trigger. Their bodies collapsed quickly, causing the helicopter to start swaying, before losing control entirely. As the metal deathtrap began spiraling, I quickly leapt out of the gunners’ area, sending my grappling hook out to a nearby building. The hook fumbled on the snow slightly, but it stuck despite it. I held the release button this time, causing me to be pulled to the hook, rather than retract the hook. I landed on the snowy rooftop in a skid on my feet, before whipping around. Upon doing so, I watched the empty helicopter spiral to the ground, where I heard it explode on impact.

“Er, M?” I asked. “Do any civilians live around here?”

“No, don’t worry.” She reassured me. “You’re good. Now, take out the other one.”

I nodded, watching as the second helicopter swiveled to let one of the gunners face me. Acting quickly, I shot my hook out at the gunnar, causing it to latch onto his face. I ran to the edge of the building, shooting a brief glance at the gunfight continuing with Y and Z, before leaping off of the roof. As I swung down, the gunner came with me, flying out of his seat.

“Shit!” I called out, as I lost my momentum and began falling. “Didn’t think this through!”

I frantically looked around, before noticing that I was only a few inches from the building that my friends are fighting in.

“Fuck it, evasive maneuvers!” I shouted, releasing my hook, while simultaneously coating my left hand in an Iron Claw.

I dug the metal fist into the side of the building, watching as the dispatched gunner fell the rest of the way to the ground, his screams ending when he disappeared in a puff of snow on the ground. Deciding to not contemplate how I could have ended up joining him, I charged a Dark Pulse on each foot, quickly using them to run up the wall, my Iron Claw still on my hand. How the hell have I not dropped my guns yet? When I hit a good height, about on level with the bottom of the other helicopter, I shot out my hook at it, clinging to the bottom of the flying vehicle. I charged a Dark Pulse on each foot, detonating them simultaneously, sending me flying horizontally. The force from the blast was not only enough to get me some momentum, but it actually caused the helicopter that my hook was stuck in to tip, before capsizing completely. Shit! As I was flung above it, I released my hook, before attaching it to the ledge of the window that I left through. I pulled myself to the ledge, going over the plummeting helicopter, watching it try to regain its center balance, only to fail horrendously, hitting the snow in a large explosion.

“Alright, M!” I shouted, as I hung from the ledge. “You’re good. We should be able to hold out for another five minutes.”

“No need.” She responded, as a black quadrotor flew above my head and into the hole, a small bag hanging from one arm, and a black box attached to the bottom. “I armed it while you dealt with the helos. Y, you and Z grab your hooks and slip out! This Seismic Charge will fuck up everything it can.”

As I heard my allies gunfire stop, I dismissed my own guns, before checking to make sure that the drugs were still secured to my waist. As I confirmed that the case was still in my possession, Y and Z slid out of the hole in single file, hanging by their hooks next to me.

“Alright, guys, thirty seconds ‘til detonation!” M told us. “It’ll only drop the building, but I’d get to your vehicle ASAP. You need to get back here now! I just checked the cameras, and the others are already waking up.”

“Shit.” I cursed, clenching my teeth. “E, which way is west?”

“To your right.” He told me.

“Alright.” I said, nodding. “Guys, follow me!”

I released my hook, before jumping off of the building’s wall. I aimed my fist at the building to my right, shooting out the hook at it. As I was pulled to it, the others followed my example, joining me on the side of the building. We quickly moved down the street two blocks, before dropping into an alley, where we found what I presume to be our escape vehicle.

“Seriously?” I shouted, looking at the car. “This is all that Rico could get us?”

“Doesn’t fucking matter!” Y told me, running to the door of the Mercedes 260D. “Just get the hell in!”

“This is literally a mob car!” Z told her. “Think of any fucking mob movie or game, and this was the car in it!”

“Get the hell in!” Y commanded, as she threw open the driver side door, before getting in.

Z and I looked at each other, before shrugging and getting in the back, just as the song ended. As soon as we were in the vehicle, Y sped out of the alley, kicking up snow. As we flew out onto the street, a loud explosion sounded behind us, signaling the detonation of the Seismic Charge.

“Fuck yes!” M cheered, the smile damn near audible.

Just as I started to relax in my seat, Y called out, “Guys, behind us!”

Z and I whipped around simultaneously, looking out the rear windshield.

“Son of a fucking whore!” I exclaimed, upon seeing a horde of vehicles chase after us. “Y, just focus on driving, we’ll take care of them!”

Z and I turned in our seats, calling our guns to us. As our guns materialized, the back windshield ate a bullet, shattering instantly, the glass falling into the storage compartment behind the seats.

“Fuck!” I shouted, as Z and I started returning fire. “E!”

“Yes, X?” The boy asked me.

“New song!” I told him. “Bring out Sofi!”

“Of course.” He responded.

After a few seconds of silence, Sofi Needs a Ladder by Deadmau5 started playing, as we continued our high speed gunfight. The chase continued, with Y weaving through the empty streets and shooting around corners, doing her best to lose the relentless horde of cars behind us. The gunfire finally paid off somewhat, as I hit the driver of one the cars in the head, sending it flying off of the road, and into a building.

“Y, is there no better way to lose these guys?” I asked her, as Z dropped a gunner with his shotgun.

“Well, there’s this red button.” She replied. “It’s labeled ‘In case of extreme emergency’.”

“This is a fucking extreme emergency!” Z shouted back. “Hit the fucking button!”

“On it!” She said, as I watched her smash the button with her hand.

Almost immediately, the car began changing. The roof above us began sliding into the car, turning it into a convertible, as the storage compartment extended outward.

“What the hell?” Z shouted, surprised.

I watched as the car stopped growing, only for a large portion of the storage compartment floor to flip around, bringing what appeared to be a gun to the surface. Within seconds, the gun popped up on a tripod, revealing itself to be a mounted Vulcan gatling gun.

“Oh, hell fucking yes!” I shouted, climbing over the seats.

I got to my feet at the gun, getting a shaky stance by holding the triggers. On the side, I saw a sticky note that read ‘Here you go, bro. Hope this helps. Rico’.

I laughed loudly, spinning up the gatling, as I called out, “Oh, hell yeah, Rico. Thank you for this fucking monster!”

When the gun was ready to fire, I held down the second button, letting the lead fly at our pursuers.

“Woohoo!” I shouted, as I sprayed into the hood of a Humvee, causing it to explode. “Cry some more, motherfuckers! Woo!”

As Y sped through the streets of Black Mesa, I continued shredding through the Organization soldiers pursuing us, tearing through the metal of the car, and into the flesh of the soldiers.

“Fucking eat it, assholes!” I taunted them. “Eat some fucking lead!”

As we continued through the Mesa, the sun began to rise, coating the snow in a golden tint. It wasn’t long before I saw citizens of the Mesa start poking their heads out of their windows, some even leaving their houses to see what was going on. Alright, need to end this soon. Can’t hurt those I’ve sworn to protect. Within minute or so, I had eliminated the rest of the cars, being sure to pop the tires before killing the soldiers.

“We’ve lost them!” I shouted to Y as I dropped in my seat again.

“Fucking nice!” She replied. “You were a fucking maniac on that thing, man!”

I chuckled quietly, as M agreed, “Can confirm. News chopper has been following you guys for a while now. They have the entire fucking chase on video.”

“What?” I asked, worried.

I began looking around, before finally locating the aforementioned helicopter.

“M, think you can get them to bug off somehow?” I asked her.

She chuckled, replying, “Of course. I’ve had my drone following you guys for a while now. Just need to hit the chopper with some interference.”

I watched as a quadrotor flew up to the helicopter, starting to ram into it, essentially trying to fuck with it. It took a few minutes, but the chopper finally bugged out, leaving us to speed down the streets alone.

“Alright, turn into an alley, so we can get home.” I told Y.

“Yep.” She replied, nodding.

Within minutes, she pulled off of the road and into an alley, where she parked the car.

“Nice.” M complimented us, as we got out and the song ended. “Now, just leave the car there, and I’ll contact Rico’s people to come and grab it.”

“Rico has people?” I asked, shocked.

“Of course.” She replied. “Everyone does. He doesn’t do everything himself.”

“True, I guess.” I agreed, shrugging.

“Now, get back.” M ordered us. “Most of the others are awake by now, and I can’t imagine that it’ll be long until the video of that chase comes back on the news. I’ll be waiting when you arrive.”

I nodded to Y, and she pulled out our return pad. She pressed the button, and dropped it on the ground.

“Step on it.” I ordered Z, as Y and I stood on the pad.

He nodded, complying. There was a flash of light, as we were suddenly back in the Portal room in the hall. Y immediately grabbed the return pad and put it back in the cabinet, just as the door opened.

“It’s me, guys.” Came the voice of Mew, as the pink cat entered the room. “Hurry, ditch the gear, and give me the loot.”

I nodded, removing my mask, sighing out, “Shit, that one was fun.”

“Maybe for you.” Shelby told me, rolling her eyes as she removed her mask. “Not all of us got to use a giant fucking gun.”

“Fair enough.” I returned, pulling off my hoodie, revealing my black tank top. I glanced over at Z, to see that he was standing frozen, before telling him, “Zack, ditch your gear for fuck’s sake. If anyone sees us like this, we’ll be fucking dead.”

“Y-You’re X?” He gasped out, shocked.

“Well, yeah.” I replied, popping my back. “And Shelby is Y. And now you’re Z.”

“Honestly, Zack,” Shelby said, “did you really think that anyone else could be as fucking crazy as my boyfriend?”

“I’m not that insane.” I insisted, nudging her, as she removed her hoodie, revealing yet another band shirt.

“Dude, you were just shooting a fucking Vulcan gatling gun from the back of a mobster vehicle, while speeding down the streets of Mesa, just after taking out two helicopters by yourself.” Mew informed me. “How the hell are you not insane?”

“She has a point.” ESTR spoke up, appearing on my shoulder. I glanced back at Zack, to see that he was still in his Assassin garb, prompting me to scold him, “Damn it, dude, get out of the fucking hoodie and mask! Do you know what the fucking consequences of this shit could be?”

This time, he complied, immediately pulling his mask off and sitting it on the counter.

“Finally.” I sighed, rolling my eyes.

Shelby came up behind me and placed her hands on my shoulders, before stretching up some to kiss my cheek, telling me, “Babe, lay off some. This is probably a lot to take in at once.”

I sighed again, saying, “Yeah, I know.” I nudged my Champion as he removed the hoodie, telling him, “Sorry, man. It’s just that this job was stressful, especially with us getting home late.”

“Speaking of the job,” Mew cut in, “mind giving me my present now?”

I chuckled, unclipping the case from my belt and handing it to her, telling her, “Here you go, milady. One case full of extremely addictive and dangerous drugs, straight from the now destroyed manufacturing plant.”

“Thank you, Shane.” She told me, accepting the case with a broad smile on her face. “Arceus, this’ll be awesome! I can’t wait to play around with this shit and do some experiments.” I smirked at her, rolling my eyes, as she told us, “I’ll be in my lab if you need me, guys. And Zack, stop by later, and I’ll fit the headset into your mask.”

He simply nodded in return, as Mew turned and left the room.

I turned to the Zoroark, telling him, “Alright, so, while we were out, Mew put a wooden chest just like ours’ in your room to store your gear in. Keep it in there until we go out another mission, okay?”

“Alright, I guess.” He replied, still obviously confused.

I sighed, going over to Zack and saying, “Hey, I know that you probably have a lot of questions, and we’ll answer all of them. But, after we grab some coffee and food. So, before that, I’ll answer only one question from you. Got it?”

He nodded, appearing to think, before slowly asking me, “How do you do it?”

I looked at him, confused, before inquiring, “What do you mean? How do we do what?”

“How do you kill so easily?” He explained. “The way you two easily took those lives. How can you do it without feeling guilty?”

I froze slightly at the question, shocked. I looked at Shelby, searching for help, but her eyes were locked onto the floor. Alright. Alone it is, I guess.

I let out a sigh, replying, “We don’t really. Every fucking day I think about it. All the families that I’ve torn apart, the people I’ve killed. The lives I’ve taken. You really don’t ever get used to it, or stop feeling guilt. You just have to block it out.”

“But you guys are called heroes by everyone.” He pointed out. “You guys are heroes.”

I let out another weighty sigh, my eyes going to the floor, as I responded, “No, Zack, we aren’t. In all reality, no one is a hero. That’s why we’re the Assassins. We’re not heroes. Just a different kind of villain. The lesser of two evils. That’s something you learn in our line of work. You’re a hero for a split second, but that status goes away as soon as you take a life. You either die a hero, or live long enough to become a villain.”

 


	19. Let's Cheers to This: Track 5

** Let's Cheers to This: Track 5 **

I slid into the shadows outside of the prison camp, resting against the fence. Alright, Lex, you can do this. Been a while, but, hell, I’m not the kind of guy to be held down. I pulled my black duster tighter around me, flipping the hood of the jacket under it onto my head, pressing my blue-ringed ears to my head. I pulled a pair of wire cutter out of my pocket, before setting to work on the fence. It took me only a few seconds to have a large enough panel of fence cut away for me to fit through. Thank fucking Arceus that Rico pulled through. Sorta curious as to how he got the electricity cut for the fence, but it’s probably best that I don’t question it. I slipped into the yard, avoiding the searchlights of the towers. They have a break out recently? This place is more guarded than when I did recon. I pushed the thought aside, moving over to the nearest watchtower. I pulled my knife out, holding it in my teeth as I backed away from the tower slightly. I took a running start, using the momentum to launch myself up the wall of the tower, grabbing onto the side of the guard platform. At least these ones aren’t as tall as the last base’s. Those were so fucking hard to get up. I peered over the short wall, observing a single dozing guard. A small smile crossed my face as I silently pulled myself up, dropping onto the floor of the platform. I took the blade from my mouth, before sliding up behind the guard. I acted quickly, reaching around and slitting his throat, causing his body to drop back onto me. I gently placed the body on the floor, taking a moment to clean the blood from the knife on the guard’s shirt, before dropping back out of the tower.

“Now then,” I whispered to myself, my eyes resting on the unguarded door before me, “let’s get this show on the road.”

I sprinted across the yard, sliding to cover next to the metal door. I gripped the handle, readying myself. I slowly opened the door, praying for no creaking, before peering into the building. Alright. One hall, then a turn to the left. If I remember correctly, that’ll lead to the cells, and that’s it. The main building is on the other side of the compound. There shouldn’t be too many prisoners here, only ten or so, so I should be able to sneak them all out. I moved into the building, releasing a breath that I hadn’t known I was holding. The door managed to make no sounds as it closed behind me, but I was already down the hall by that time. I turned the corner, rushing into the hall of cells. As I passed the bars, I peered into them. When I reached the end of the hall, I had counted eleven total prisoners, all but a Gligar and Drowzee being humans. I went to the cell to my right, crouching down at the lock. I pulled out a small lock picking kit from my jacket, before setting to work.

As I worked on opening the door, I noticed that the woman inside had awoken, so I quickly reassured her wide eyes, “Relax. I’m here to get you guys out.”

“Oh, are you now?” I deep voice sounded behind me, chilling my blood. I slowly turned around, my eyes locking on the large Abomasnow that spoke, as he continued, “Because we frown upon any jail breaks.”

Before I could speak, he snapped his fingers, and a Gallade holding an assault rifle popped out from behind him. The next thing I knew, the butt of the rifle was smashed against my face, and my world went black.

* * *

** P.O.V Change: Shane **

I finished lacing up my boots, before rising from my bed.

“Why can’t I come with you guys?” Zack asked me.

“Because I need someone here that I can trust to manage the others.” I told him, clipping my swords to my back. “You have to keep them training.”

“But this could be my first mission.” He pleaded. “I could show you how I can perform in the field.”

“Technically speaking, you already went on your first mission.” I pointed out.

He rolled his eyes, saying, “My first Champion mission, then.”

I sighed, placing my hands on his shoulders, telling him, “Listen, Zack, you have to see where I’m coming from. This is my first Champion mission, as well. I don’t think that I’d have to worry about watching you, but I don’t want to risk anything. I’ve never been out with anyone other than you and Shelby, so I want to show that I can do more than just fight.”

He looked at me for a few seconds, before nodding, replying, “Alright. I see where you’re coming from, and I understand.”

“Thank you.” I told him, pulling him in for a hug. “I’m sorry that you aren’t coming, but I just want this to go well.”

“Er, yeah, I understand.” He said. “Now, can you let go? This is getting sorta awkward.”

I quickly released him, replying, “Oh, right. Sorry.” He nodded, and I added, “I can trust you and Shelby to keep everyone in check, right?”

“Of course.” He assured me, nodding. “We’ve got it down.”

“Thanks.” I told him, nodding back.

I stepped out of my room, with Zack following me into the hall. Outside, Shelby stood, waiting for me.

“You ready, love?” She asked me.

“Yep.” I told her, patting Strife and Fair on my back.

She leaned in to kiss me, and I quickly returned the action, our lips meeting. We stayed in this embrace for a few seconds, before breaking apart, releasing each other.

“Well, I guess you should get going.” She told me.

“Yeah.” I agreed. “I love you. I’ll be back as soon as possible.”

“Love you, too.” She told me, nodding. “And I’m sure you’ll get back soon. After all, it’s only a recon mission.”

I nodded, turning around and starting down the hall. I eventually reached the cafeteria, where the rest of my team was waiting, clad in stealth gear consisting of a black hoodie and black jeans. I sat down with them, next to the Arcanine.

“Took you long enough.” Chelsea joked, elbowing me. “Sleep in late?”

I rolled my eyes, replying, “Sorry that I had to shower. I could have just come with you guys without it.”

Dialga chuckled, saying, “I’d prefer that you are clean when we go, personally.”

“Speaking of going,” Darkrai cut in, “is that every going to happen?”

“Yep.” I responded. “Ready whenever.”

Darkrai got up from the table, saying, “Let’s go then. Remember, I lead this operation.”

“Yep.” Dialga agreed, nodding, as we all rose from our seats. “Just recon, right?”

“Of course.” Darkrai replied, nodding. “Now, let’s go.”

We all left the empty cafeteria, heading down the hall to the Teleporter Room. Alright, Shane, just keep calm. You’ve been out in the field before. This is just another recon mission. That’s all. We made it to the room, all of us piling in.

Darkrai pulled out two return pads, chucking one to me, saying, “Here. Arceus likes to have a spare taken on each mission, so you’re this mission’s.”

I nodded to her, sliding the pad into my pocket.

She went to address all of us, saying, “Alright, you guys know the basis of this mission. Get there, do some reconnaissance, and get the fuck out. We’ve all done these kind of missions before-” She cut off, her eyes flicking to me, before apologizing, “Er, sorry, Shane.”

I just waved it off, telling her, “It’s fine. I understand that previously I was viewed as the weakest, and subsequently most undesirable, Champion. Therefore, I understand that I never went on a mission, and I’m perfectly fine with the acknowledgement, or lack-there-of, of this fact.”

My Legend seemed somewhat taken aback by my calm reply, but she continued despite her surprise, “R-Right. Anyway, this is just a simple recon mission. No fighting, and no witnesses. Got it?”

“Yes, Darkrai.” I replied, with the others echoing me.

She nodded, smiling at our responses, before telling us, “Then I believe that it’s time for us to leave.”

I nodded back at her, and she stepped into the portal. We all followed her in turn, causing me to bring up the end of our small group. We ended up in the woods surrounding Mesa, not too far from a certain cabin holding some allies of mine. X’s allies. They don’t know me. Only X. When we all stood in the small clearing, Darkrai nodded to us, before starting to lead us through the woods. It didn’t take us too long to reach our destination: a prison camp, about the same size as the one that I hit on my first night as X. As we watched, I noticed that the guard towers had their lights sweeping around, scanning the perimeter.

“Odd.” Darkrai commented. “When I came for a quick look the other night, they didn’t have anywhere near as much security.”

“Think that they had an escape attempt recently?” Dialga asked.

As they spoke, I scanned the side of the base that we could see, before my eyes caught on one detail.

“More like a break in.” I told the group, pointing at a somewhat large hole in the fence.

Without waiting for an order from Darkrai, I quickly dashed over to the hole, sliding to a crouch at it. I began examining the cut wire, barely noticing the others moving up next to me.

Until Darkrai hit me on the shoulder, hissing out, “Shane, what the hell? I didn’t fucking tell you to move up!”

“I’m sorry, okay?” I told her, flashing a glance at her. “But look at this wire. Someone absolutely came in.”

“How can you tell?” Chelsea asked me, leaning in closer.

“Look at the severed pieces.” I said, indicating the fence. “These were cut, not bent or melted. Someone had the tools for this job.”

“I guess so.” Dialga agreed. “Nice work, Shane.”

I was about to reply to her, but I froze upon hearing the sound of a door open. All of our eyes locked onto the shadowed entrance, as we watched two figures come out, dragging something between them. As the soldiers left the shadows, I heard Chelsea let out a gasp as we all realized what it was. Between the two men, they were dragging two dead bodies, a Drowzee and a Gligar. They brought them over to a large hole in the ground by one of the sides of the fence, before pushing the bodies into it, causing them to drop out of our sight. With that done, we watched as the men turned toward a second building, before they started for it. I once again acted on impulse, skirting the fence, heading for the hole, avoiding any lights. When I reached my target, I quickly recoiled at the sickening sight, backing up from the fence. As I felt bile rise up in my throat as the stench hit me, I heard the others grow closer. As soon as they reached me, they started for the fence, wanting to look in the hole. I acted quickly and on impulse, grabbing Chelsea’s hand, preventing her from going any closer. She looked back at me, questioning, before breaking free of my grasp to join the other two at the hole.

There was silence for a few moments, before Dialga stammered out, disgust and fear riddling her voice, “W-What the hell is this?”

“Is it what I think it is?” Darkrai asked.

I let out a sigh, going to join them at the fence, replying, “Yeah. It is.” I gazed into the giant hole full of corpses, finishing, “A mass grave.”

“O-Oh my Arceus.” Chelsea choked out, turning away from the hole.

She then surprised me by burying her face in my chest, hiding her from the grave. I quickly overcame my shock, wrapping my arms around the sickened Arcanine, attempting to soothe her.

“I know, Chels.” I assured her. “It’s bad. I know.”

The Legends turned to face me, their eyes wide and their faces contorted in disgusted grimaces.

“Holy shit.” Dialga said, sitting down in the shadows. “What the hell are they doing here? Who could ever do that?”

“The Organization.” I sighed out. “It’s what they do.”

Darkrai moved away from the fence, leaning up against a tree, as she told us, “Arceus, that’s fucking horrible. All of those bodies.” She visibly shuddered, before adding, “It’s appalling.”

I turned to face her, my arms still around Chelsea, saying, “You know what we have to do.”

The Legends looked at me, and the Arcanine in my arms leaned back from my chest to focus her eyes on me, as Darkrai sighed out, “Are you implying what I think you are?”

“Of course.” I replied, nodding. “We can’t let anyone stay in there. This isn’t a recon mission anymore, it’s a prison break. Some of those bodies look like they’re as recent as a week or so ago. They’ve been downsizing drastically, and we have to take their inventory. If we don’t get them out now, then their won’t be any to get out later.”

Darkrai’s eyes rested on me, unwavering, as she thought about my words.

After almost a minute without a reply, Dialga pressed, “Darkrai, you know the truth in his words. It’s now, or never.”

“It’s a simple infiltration operation.” I told her. “Get in, take out the commander and soldiers, and escape with the prisoners.”

“We need to, Darkrai.” Chelsea added. “If not us, then who will?”

My Legend sighed, finally replying, “Alright. We’ll do it. Any of us have any experience with these bases?”

“Only one I’ve ever been to is the one with you, Shelby, and Moltres, and that wasn’t a prison base.” Chelsea responded, leaving my arms.

“I rarely get to go on missions in the first place.” Dialga added.

A few more seconds passed, before I slowly raised my hand, sighing out, “I’ve handled multiple.”

The others looked at me, surprised, as Darkrai asked me, “Really? How?”

I shrugged nervously, replying, “I decided to do some solo missions. No one ever took me seriously, so I had to do something to help.”

“How many have you done?” Dialga asked me.

“About six or so.” I replied, without thinking. “I sorta know the layout.”

“Could you give us a quick run through of it?” The dragon Legend followed up.

“Easy.” I said, shrugging. I pointed at the nearest building, telling them, “That’s the prison itself. Pretty simple layout. One level, one way. The door opens into a hallway, which takes a turn into a wider hall, with cells on both sides. Nothing too major.” I then pointed to the two story building across the camp from us, continuing, “The barracks. A simple building, really. A large, open room on both floors, with either a ladder at the back or a set of stairs. It’s essentially a giant bedroom, really.”

Darkrai nodded, saying, “Alright. We’ll split into two teams. Dialga and Chelsea, you two can take the prison. Shane, you’re with me at the barracks.”

I nodded, adding, “Dialga, if you and Chelsea get done early, head to the barracks. Us going into it will cause a distraction, and that could cause some trouble for us. We may need the extra fire power.”

The duo nodded, and Darkrai said, “Alright. Now, let’s get to work.”

We all nodded to her, flipping our hoods up. The trio then spawned their weapons; Chelsea’s axe appearing on her back, Darkrai’s scythe materializing in her hands, and Dialga’s rapier spawning on her waist. Before another word could be said, the other team swept back to the hole in the fence, moving through the shadows quickly. I nodded to Darkrai, and we both returned to the fence, this time a few feet from the grave.

“The fence would normally be electrified,” I told her, “but it appears that they’ve been having some wiring issues, as it’s not hot. Therefore, we should be able to just climb over.”

Darkrai nodded to me, and I knelt down at the fence, my back to the metal and my hands cupped near my crotch. The Legend backed up some, before running to my. She stepped into my hand, and I easily launched her light figure into the air. She did a small flip in the air, before landing on her feet gracefully. I moved away from the fence, taking a running start, launching myself up the wire. I quickly made my way over and onto my feet, joining Darkrai. We wordlessly moved across the yard, my eyes flicker to the other team moving into the prison for a few moments, before my attention returned to dodging the lights. It took us a few minutes, but we eventually reached the barracks, both of us taking cover on opposite sides of the door.

“Alright.” I told Darkrai. “Most of the guards should be asleep, but some will be up. We should be able to get the drop on them, assuming that we can remain unseen.”

Darkrai nodded, gripping Black Rose tightly. I nodded back, drawing Strife, before slowly opening the door.

* * *

** P.O.V Change: Chelsea **

Dialga and I slipped into the building quickly, shutting the door behind us quietly. From up ahead came the sound of voices, so we swiftly snuck up to the turn up ahead. We stacked up, Dialga up front with me behind her. We both peered around the corner, spotting two guards in the wide hallway of cells. Both were facing away from us, deeply invested in a conversation about whatever the hell they had for dinner. I glanced at Dialga, and she gave me a quick nod. We moved around the corner, our weapons at the ready. I took my place behind the one on the left, while Dialga stood behind the other. We both looked at each other, doing a countdown in nods. When we hit zero, we struck. I kicked my guard’s feet out from under him, knocking him to the ground, before slashing my halberd down into his chest. As I did this, Dialga cleanly dispatched her guard, running her sword through his neck, leaving him gasping through the blood.

With both of our targets dead, Dialga commented, “You really don’t understand being covert and nonchalant, do you?”

I merely shrugged, replying, “I have a giant fucking axe. I can be graceful, but I enjoy mixing some brutality in with it.”

“So I see.” She chuckled. “I’m quite happy that Shane was never forced to meet that brutality.”

I sighed slightly, rubbing the back of my head awkwardly, agreeing, “Yeah, looking back on it, I was a fucking bitch. Not my finer moments in life.”

Suddenly, a loud siren began blaring throughout the base, and a red light began swirling around the room.

Dialga sighed, saying, “Speaking of nonchalant.”

* * *

** P.O.V Change: Shane **

I hid behind the pillar, feeling bullets rip through the air around me.

“Nice fucking job with the stealth!” I shouted at Darkrai, who was copying me at another pillar.

“How the hell was I supposed to know that there would be someone leaving the kitchen?” She yelled back, blind firing her black repeater around the stone. “I didn’t get the memo that someone wanted fucking popcorn at three in the damn morning!”

“Speaking of not getting memos,” I retorted, “how long were you planning on waiting before telling me that Black Rose is also a fucking repeater?”

“It never came up!” She replied, firing Rose down at the firing squad of soldiers on the other side of the room. “Besides, it’s a Reaper Weapon! All of them have multiple forms!”

“All?” I asked. “I thought that you’re the only fucking Reaper!”

“There’s one other, as well as a plethora of Apprentices!” She answered. “I’ll explain more later. For now, just fucking shoot!”

I nodded, pulling Fair from my back. I propped Strife up against the pillar, before leaning around the stone slightly, still hiding from the neverending stream of bullets. I aimed down the scope of Strife, resting the sight on a soldier’s head, before pulling the trigger. Before I could confirm a kill, I was forced back into my hiding spot by the gunfire, but I assumed it to be a success.

“Where the hell is our backup when we need it?” Darkrai shouted, as I sent a bullet flying without looking.

“I don’t fucking know!” I replied. “Remind me to take that up with Arceus when we get back! We need fucking headsets in the field! How am I the first person to realize that?”

“You aren’t, really!” Came a familiar voice, as the Legend that owns it slid up to Darkrai’s pillar, taking cover in a crouched position.

“Here’s the backup, I guess!” I called out, as Chelsea slid up to my pillar.

“You guys get everyone out?” Darkrai asked, as we continued firing blindly.

“Almost!” Dialga replied. “A woman told us about someone that tried to save them last night! Said he was taken away! Didn’t see any fresh bodies in the grave, other than those two prisoners, so I imagine he’s been taken here, as a high priority prisoner!”

“Oh!” Chelsea suddenly called, digging in her pockets. “Shane, I have something for you!” I glanced down at her, to see that she was holding out a round for Strife, offering it to me.

I took it from her, examining it, noticing the orange ring around the bottom.

“Mew and I have been working on it for a little bit now!” She explained. “She just finished it up before we left, and she wanted me to give it to you!”

“Made by you?” I asked her. She nodded, and I smiled back at her, replying, “Thanks for the Flame Shot, Chels!”

I stabbed Strife into the ground in front of us, popping out the clip. I slid the third Shot into its slot, before sliding the clip back in. Half way there. Only three more. I leaned out of my cover slightly, aiming at a soldier as I cycled to the Flame Shot. I positioned my scope on his chest, before pulling the trigger. We all watched from cover as the round made contact, creating a small explosion of fire, similar to the Flame Burst move. The fire not only lit the target ablaze, but it spread to the soldiers to his immediate sides, burning them as well. A small smile crossed my face at the results, before acquiring another target. I pulled the trigger once again, but Strife merely produced a clicking sound.

“What the hell?” I questioned, confused.

“I forgot, Mew said that it has a recharge time!” Chelsea told me. “Due to how powerful it is, it has to be given some time to recharge another shot. Should take about thirty seconds, I think she said.”

I sighed, rolling my eyes, saying, “She really is turning my life into a role playing game.”

“Not a bad thing, really.” Dialga pointed out.

“But we can’t wait around for you to take them all out with it.” Darkrai added. “Di, you think you can work some of your magic?”

“Maybe.” The Temporal Pokemon replied. “But you know that I can only do it for a few seconds before I get a headache. And I’m useless while I’m doing it.”

“But it’ll help us move up.” Darkrai said.

“Then I’ll need a gun.” Chelsea told us.

I nodded, looking around. My eyes eventually rested on an assault rifle not too far from us, just out of reach. I quickly concentrated on the weapon, focusing my Psychic on the rifle. After a few seconds of struggling, the weapon began moving towards Chelsea, who quickly grabbed it, just as my head started hurting.

The Arcanine gripped the weapon tightly, as I told her, “There. Know how to use it?”

She nodded, replying, “Sorta. Shouldn’t be too hard, really.”

I nodded back, shooting a glance at Darkrai and Dialga. Dialga nodded back, before closing her eyes. Her actions took a few seconds to take effect, but when they did, we all noticed them immediately. All of the bullets around us slowed down drastically, to where they were barely moving at all. Knowing that our time was limited, Darkrai, Chelsea, and I quickly left our cover, starting to send round down range as we moved from cover to cover, with me switching over to the Flame Round only once in our advance. As the soldier’s numbers dwindled to about five, I noticed time speeding up again.

“Take cover!” I called out, bringing this matter to the attention of the others.

They nodded, and we all quickly hid behind whatever hard surface we could find, just barely beating time returning to normal. Before too many more bullets could fly from our enemies, however, we quickly put them down. When the fighting was finally done, we left our cover, taking the chance to actually look at what we did. We stood in silence, the girls giving off a sense of shock.

“Holy shit.” Dialga gasped out, looking at the reddened back wall and floor. “We did that?”

I nodded, replying, “Yep.” I quickly moved toward the ladder on the wall, adding, “C’mon. We have a would-be saviour to rescue.”

“Seriously?” Chelsea asked, shocked. “You don’t feel anything about the fact that we just killed all of those soldiers?”

I just shrugged, stopping, and replied, “I guess that I’m just used to it. Haven’t you killed soldiers before?”

“Barely.” The Arcanine told me. “Like, five, before today.”

“Well, that’s changed now.” I said, noticing that I had cut Darkrai off from what she was going to say. “And we can discuss it later. But right now, all that matters is taking out the commander and rescuing the prisoner.”

She still seemed shocked by my reaction, but followed me to the ladder anyway, with the Legends taking up the back. I quickly scaled the ladder, climbing up to a room completely void of furniture. As I climbed up, I noticed a single door on the other end of the room, embedded in the wall. I glanced at the others as they joined me, with Darkrai responding with a small shrug. Taking the lead once again, I slowly moved over to the door, keeping Strife slung over my shoulder. When I reached the door, I held a hand up, putting my ear to the metal.

I heard the sound of a blow landing, followed by a muffled grunt and a deep voice taunting, “Hear that silence? That means that those would be saviours of yours have been killed by my men. How many lives have you inadvertently taken now?”

There was another blow, followed by a grunt. I gritted my teeth at the sounds, before pulling the door handle and throwing it open. As soon as the door scraped open, I saw a large Abomasnow spin around, his large hand wrapped around a hooded form’s neck. Before any of us could react, the Abomasnow had already pulled the down person to its feet, holding him in front of his large, snowy body.

He smirked at us, tightening his grip on his hostage, growling out, “Well, it appears that my useless men have finally paid for their piss poor performance.” He backed up some, his back a few feet from the wall behind him, the moonlight shining in through the window behind him, as he said, “Come any closer, and I’ll collapse his little windpipe.”

I clipped Strife to my back, pulling out Fair and aiming it at the commander, telling him, “Just let him go, and I’ll let you off with a warning.”

He chuckled deeply, his smirk not moving, as he returned, “Oh, trust me, I’ll be getting out of here. You four, on the other hand, won’t.”

As he spoke, my eyes began scanning his hostage’s body, showing just what had happened to the man. There were multiple slashes and stabs in his duster, with blood surrounding each hole. He appeared to be breathing heavily from his injuries, and his black tail hung limply behind him, the blue ring near the tip glowing dimly. An Umbreon? And a Shiny, at that.

“Come to think of it,” the Abomasnow continued, “I do believe that I recognize two of you punks. Darkrai and Dialga. So, the rumors were true.”

“Rumors?” I asked, my sudden curiosity momentarily overtaking my concern for the Umbreon. “Concerning what, exactly?”

“The Legends and Champions.” He replied, smirking at me. “You see, word had been moving through the ranks of the Organization that they had returned to fight us, but we had all been reassured that those rumors are exaggerated, and that the sightings and attacks were merely impersonators.” He licked his lips, as if this fact pleased him greatly, “But this proves it. Not that it matters, in all honesty. We’ll surely win, any way.”

I growled in annoyance at his arrogance, quickly coming up with a plan. It took me only a few seconds for my next move to come to me, so I acted swiftly. I switched Fair to Stun Shot, which I quickly launched at the leg of the Umbreon. The Shot hit, causing the Dark type to jolt upright from the electricity, before collapsing out of the surprised Ice types arms. I quickly switched over to the Standard Shot, which quickly met its mark in the commander’s head. As soon as I pulled the trigger, I moved over to the Umbreon, dropping to my knees next to him before the Abomasnow’s body dropped, and before my allies even knew what happened. I flipped the Umbreon’s hood off, revealing his bruised and cut face, blood stuck in his fur, his eyes wide from the Stun.

“I’m sorry about that.” I apologized, my eyes focused on his face. “But I had to get you away from him.”

He nodded slightly as the Stun slowly faded away, telling me that he understands. I nodded back, as the others joined me next to him.

“Darkrai, you and Di pick him up.” I ordered, getting to my feet, trying to block out the odd incoming thoughts.

“What are we doing with him?” Darkrai asked me, as I began looking around the room, scanning for a certain item.

“Taking him back with us.” I replied calmly, finally spotting what I was looking for.

“Are you fucking serious?” My Legend asked me. “We can’t take him back with us! Outsiders aren’t allowed in the Hall.”

I spun around to her, shooting a glare at the Reaper, growling out, “Then I’ll take it up with Arceus myself! We aren’t fucking leaving him here. He’s coming back with us.”

The Legend didn’t reply, too stunned by my reaction. I whipped around, not bothering to make sure that my orders were being followed, before going over to the camera on the wall. I reached up to it, confirming my assumption. I popped the side of the camera open, taking out the tape.

“What’s that?” Chelsea asked me, coming up behind me.

I turned around, telling her, “Security tape. The Organization likes to have both digital storage cameras and tape storage around here.”

“Why are you taking it?” She followed up.

“To disprove rumors.” I informed her. “If the Organization has been hiding our return from its own soldiers, then you can bet that they haven’t told the citizens of the world. So, that’s what this is doing. I’ll give it to the news station in Mesa, and they’ll show it in the morning. Let people know that we’re back.”

“Smart thinking.” She told me, nodding. “How will you get it to them, though?”

I chuckled quietly, replying simply, “I have my ways. Don’t worry about that.”

She sent a confused glance at me, but didn’t question it, as I walked past her, coming over to where the Legends held the Umbreon.

“Ready?” I asked, pulling the return pad out of my pocket.

They all nodded, so I dropped the disk on the ground, causing it to expand. We all stood on the pad, squeezing together tightly, before a bright flash of light exploded around us. The next thing I knew, we were all standing in the Teleporter Room of the Hall.

“Take him to the Infirmary.” I ordered, moving to the door. “I’ll go get Arceus.”

Without waiting for a reply, I left the room, darting down the hall. I reached my first stop in seconds, sliding to a stop before Mew’s door.

I knocked rapidly, before hearing, “Come in!”

I complied, pushing the door open, revealing Mew in her sleep clothes, sitting cross-legged on her bed, a laptop in her lap.

“Shane?” She asked. “What’s up?”

I pulled the tape out of my pocket, showing it to the cat, saying, “Got something I need delivered. Can you do it?”

“Sure, I guess.” She replied, somewhat confused. “Where to? And what is it?”

“The news office in Mesa.” I told her, tossing the tape to her. “And don’t worry about what it is. Just trust me, it’s important.” I grabbed the door handle, adding, “I’d love to stay and chat, but I have pressing matters to attend to. Thanks for this, Mew. I owe you.”

“Er, yeah, sure.” She replied, curiously examining the tape. “See yah.”

I pulled the door shut, stepping back into the dark hall. Now, to deal with that Umbreon. This time, I moved to Arceus’s room slowly, lost in thought. Who is he? And why does he seem so familiar? I feel like I’ve seen him before. I once again shook the thoughts from my head, as I reached Arceus’s door.

I once again rapped on the wood, being answered with, “You may enter.”

I slowly pushed the door open, shocked to see Arceus sitting on her bed, fully dressed.

“Back already, Shane?” She inquired upon my entrance. “I trust that everything went fine?”

“Er, not necessarily.” I replied, suddenly very nervous. “We sort of had a snag.”

“Oh?” She asked. “In what form?”

I took a deep breath, before telling her, “We’ve brought someone back.”

I braced myself for her anger, causing me to be shocked when she calmly replied, “Oh? And why is this?”

“Y-You aren’t angry?” I asked her tentatively.

“Of course not.” She told me. “I’m sure that if my second in command brought an outsider into the Hall, he has a very good reason to do so.”

I nodded quickly, saying, “I understand. You see, this man was taken hostage by the commander of the base, which we ended up taking tonight, due to extreme circumstances. This man is badly injured, suffering multiple lacerations and blows to his body. Therefore, I made the decision to bring him back here for emergency treatment.”

She nodded, rising from her bed, telling me, “Then you needn’t worry. That is a valid reason, in my books.”

I bowed slightly, saying, “Thank you, Lady Arceus. I had the girls take the Umbreon to the infirmary.”

This time, she faltered slightly, before asking me, “Oh? An Umbreon?”

“Yes.” I replied, nodding., noticing her change in interest. “A Shiny Umbreon, in a black duster coat.”

Her eyes grew wide for a few moments, before she quickly righted herself, shakily saying, “I see. I shall head down there immediately.”

I nodded to her, somewhat taken aback by her actions, but she left before I could question her. As I heard her retreat down the hall, I couldn’t help but think about the Umbreon again. Who the hell is he? Where have I seen him? I left Arceus’s room, lost in thought, heading down the hall. I didn’t notice where I was going, up until I crashed into an unmovable wall. Or that’s what I thought it was. I dropped on my ass, wincing at the pain from the impact.

“Shit.” A deep voice said above me. “Shane! I’m so sorry.”

I looked up, confused, my eyes wide at the person I hit. Standing before me, at least eight feet tall, was the giant that is Giratina. He wore a pair of black jeans, with a deep purple t-shirt on his torso. Around his neck, I could see a few gold chokers, and his black wings rested against his back.

He held his giant hand out to me, apologizing, “Holy shit, Shane. I’m so sorry. I hadn’t seen you there.”

I accepted his hand, allowing him to pull me up with ease, as I returned, “It-It’s fine, Giratina. It’s my fault.” I dusted myself off slightly, before awkwardly asking, “But, er, what are you doing in your male form?”

“O-Oh!” He started. “You see, I-”

Before he could get a full sentence out, however, a dark purple Espeon head poked out of his room, speaking, “Giratina, love? What’s going on?”

“N-Nothing, Korra.” He quickly spouted out.

The Espeon looked at me now, her eyes scanning over me, before she said, “Hello.” She reached out her hand, introducing herself, “I’m Korra, Giratina’s wife. Or, as some may call me, the Queen of Hell.”

“The Queen of Hell?” I asked, confused.

“Of course.” She replied, nodding. “After all, Giratina is the King of Hell. Therefore, I am the Queen.”

“Er, okay then.” I said, nodding to her. I reached out my hand, and she accepted it, as I introduced, “I’m Shane. Darkrai’s Champion, and Arceus’s second in command.”

“Oh?” She inquired. “So, you’re the one that I’ve heard so much about?”

“What have you heard about me?” I asked her, intrigued.

“Just some about your skill here.” She told me. “Both Giratina and Darkrai seem impressed by you.”

“Well, in all honesty, I shouldn’t be surprised by him.” He chuckled out. “After all, all other Umbreon that I’ve worked with have been deadly effective, albeit somewhat rouge.”

“But, that just helped them in their efforts.” She added.

Suddenly feeling awkward, I quickly excused myself, “Well, it has been nice meeting you, but I should get going. I just got back from a mission, and I’m rather tired.”

“Of course.” Giratina said, nodding. “Good night, Shane.”

“Night, Shane.” Korra told me. “Nice meeting you.”

“G’night.” I told them, starting down the hall.

I slowly made my way to my room, suddenly becoming aware of how tired I actually am. I’ll have to speak with that Umbreon in the morning. I must know who he is.

 


	20. Turning in Side Quests: Part One

**Turning in Side Quests: Part One**

"C'mon, Mew." I pleaded to the cat before me. "Just let me in. I just want to talk to him."

"Shane, for the tenth time, no." She shot back, her stern glare locked onto me.

"But I have to talk to him." I begged. "It's urgent."

"No means fucking no, Shane." She told me, doing her best to stand at my height, yet still falling too short. "Now, go away, or else I'll have to tell Arceus our little secret."

I froze for a moment, before saying, "You fucking wouldn't."

She smirked at me, replying, "Oh, I fucking will."

I matched her smirk with my glare for a few moments, before dropping my eyes, sighing. I turned and stalked off, my ears low and a growl resonating from my throat. Just before I was too far away, however, I spawned Fair, before sending a Stun Shot at Mew. I heard a yelp of pain and surprise behind me, followed by a thud, telling me that I hit my mark. I turned to the next hall, a smile crossing my face. I straightened up from my slouch, my ears shooting up, as I headed for my next destination.  _I'd like to get some answers from our resident King of Hell._ I moved through the Hall, coming to a stop at Giratina's door.  _Let's see who answers it._ I made a fist, rapping on the door sharply.

It took a few moments, but I eventually heard the relatively deep female voice of Giratina reply, "Come in."

I stepped into the room, closing the door behind me. I scanned the room, seeing that only Giratina sat on the bed, dressed in the same clothing as last night.

"Oh." She said, noticing me. "It's you." She raised her voice slightly, saying to the air, "You can come out. It's only Shane."

There was a moment where nothing happened, before the closet door to my right opened, and Korra stepped out, wearing a pair of gray sweatpants and a purple tank top.

"Hello, Shane." She greeted me, sitting down next to Giratina.

"Hello, Korra." I returned, as Giratina was surrounded by a swirling purple and gold aura. "How has your morning been?"

"Oh, fine." She replied, as the aura cleared, revealing the male Giratina. "You actually just woke us up."

"I apologize." I told her. "I could leave and let you sleep, if you'd like."

"Oh, it's alright." Giratina said, waving his large hand lightly. "Besides, it's almost two. We should have been up hours ago." He paused for a second, before adding, "Thanks for not scheduling anything for me today."

I chuckled, replying, "No problem. I assume that this is the reason that you asked for it off?"

He chuckled deeply, answering, "Yeah, sorta. Anyway, what can we do for you, Shane?"

I hesitated a moment, before replying, "Well… I'd like to know more about you, I guess. About how you have a wife, even though no other Legends technically do? And how you're the King of Hell?"

Giratina let out a sigh, saying, "That is quite a lot to explain after just waking up."

I nodded, telling him, "I can leave you alone, if you want me to."

"No, no." He assured me. "It's fine." He waved to the chair at the desk across from his bed, telling me, "Take a seat, and we can tell you."

I nodded again, sitting down in the chair. Giratina let out a sigh, wrapping his arm around Korra, before pulling her in close.

"First off, is there anything in particular that you want to know?" He asked me.

I thought for a few moments, before replying, "Well, I wouldn't mind knowing what your true form is. Are you truly a male, or a female?"

"This is who I am." He informed me. "Been a guy for thousands of years." He sighed again, adding, "Fucking hate being a female, as well."

"Then why do it?" I asked him. "Why do you feel the need to hide who you are?"

"It isn't really my choice to make." He said. "We both know how the others react to males, and we both know why." My eyes went wide at this statement, and he told me, "Trust me, Shane, I know more about you than you think. Keep in mind, it's my job to rule over the dead. I like to keep tabs on them."

I stuttered for a second, asking, "So… You know about how I got here?"

"Of course I do." He informed me. "I had sent my other Reaper after you when it happened. Darkrai just happened to get there first. He always did have a knack for knowing my next move."

"Don't act like that hasn't been for the greater good, though." Korra pointed out. "And I'm not just talking about Shane. He and Mew have always been a good team."

The Demon Lord sighed, asking rather sadly, "You'll never let me live any of that down, will you?"

"I never said that I didn't forgive you, Garry." She told him. "I managed to long before he and his family ever did. After all, he may have never known about myself and the boys being guarded by Hades, and there's no telling what the Corrupt hellhound would have done to us." The Espeon kissed Giratina's cheek, adding, "Besides, he's your main Reaper, now that Darkrai is a full time Legend. I highly doubt that he would have accepted Nightblade without using it on you if he hadn't forgiven you."

I raised my eyebrow at the two, confused, but Giratina told me, "Don't ask, Shane. The Warriors fought thousands of years before you were even a thought. Same with the Background."

"Maybe you can tell me some other time, then?" I asked him.

He merely shrugged, replying, "Maybe. Just know that your blood runs far deeper than you think."

This statement both confused and intrigued me, but I instead chose to ask, "While we do know how the others feel around males, most of them have changed opinions now, and I'm sure that they wouldn't mind it. Especially since you are one of them."

"Maybe so." He told me. "But I still doubt that they'd appreciate it. Especially my male Champion clothing."

"Why would they hate your gear?" I asked him.

A smirk crossed his face, and he replied, "How about I show you, rather than tell you?"

I raised my eyebrow, intrigued, as he rose to his feet. He closed his eyes, before a black and purple aura swirled around him. It stayed around his body longer than usual, but when it cleared, I felt my mouth gape at the sight. Before me stood a large set of purple armour, almost eight feet tall. Every corner and detail was carved to a point, surely an attempt to increase the fear of the wearer's enemies. Just above the spiky shoulders rested a complete purple helm, with purple wings rising from the top. Giratina extended his hand out to me, and a glow appeared in his grip. I watched as the glow formed a long, purple greatsword, one that split into two thick prongs not too far above the hilt.

"Holy. Fucking. Shit." I gasped out, viewing the Legend before me.

A chuckle sounded from the armour, followed by, "Thought so."

Another aura swirled around Giratina, clearing away the armour. When it was done, he sat back down on his bed, a smirk on both his and Korra's faces.

"That is why they may not like it." He told me.

"So I see." I agreed. "But does it look different when you're a female?"

"Not necessarily." He said. "It actually doesn't change at all, which is why I don't use it. Different body types."

Korra chuckled, adding, "What he means, is that having breasts makes armour annoying."

The Demon Lord rolled his eyes, agreeing, "Yes, essentially. It is very uncomfortable. Tried it once, and it was horrendous." He cleared his throat, asking me, "So, anything else?"

"Just one more, then I'll leave you two alone." I responded. "You're the King of Hell?"

He chuckled, nodding to me, saying, "Yep. I'm the King. Korra is the Queen. Xavier and Marquis are our Prince's."

"Xavier and Marquis?" I inquired. "You have sons?"

"Yep." Korra told me. "Xavier is our Zoroark son. Marquis is our Shiny Greninja son."

"Cool." I said, nodding. "I assume that they live in Hell?"

"Yep." She answered. "As do I. I just wanted to visit Giratina here for a little bit. He hasn't been visiting much as of late."

"Talk to him about that." Giratina said, motioning to me. "Arceus made him the Second in Command, and he's been scheduling daily training for everyone."

I chuckled nervously, replying, "Heh, sorry. I can give him some time off, if you'd like."

Korra waved her hand lightly, saying, "Oh, it's fine. If it helps him take down the Organization, then I'm all for it. Just, y'know, a day or two every now and then wouldn't be bad."

I nodded, telling her, "I'll be sure to give him some time off then."

"Thank you." Giratina told me. "So, anything else?"

I shook my head, rising from my seat, replying, "Nope. Thanks."

"No problem." He said, as I went to the door. "See-yah later."

"You too." I returned, opening the door. "Bye, Korra." I went to leave, stepping out into the hall, but before I fully closed the door, I leaned my head in, saying, "Oh, and Giratina? Maybe you actually should give being who you want a try. The others may surprise you."

And with that, I closed the door, leaving myself alone in the hall. I let out a small sigh, shaking my head lightly.  _Now then. To Darkrai's room._ It took me only a few moments to reach my Legend's room, where I hoped that she would be. Holding my breath, I quickly knocked on the door.

"It's open." She answered.

I slowly opened the door, before sliding into the room. Upon closing the door behind me, I noticed that the Reaper sat at her desk, a laptop open before her. My Legend was dressed in a pair of basketball shorts and a tight t-shirt around her bust, with the visible moisture on her black flesh giving away that she had just showered.

I chuckled lightly as she turned to face me, commenting, "Isn't it a little too cold out for that amount of covering?"

She merely shrugged, replying, "I've never been one for feeling temperatures, in all honesty." She paused for a moment, before adding, "Besides, don't think that I didn't see your eyes."

I froze for a second, before smirking at her, saying, "Can't help it, really. Human nature to notice a beautiful girl."

She giggled quietly, asking me, "Don't you think that Shelby would be mad if she heard you?"

I sat down on her bed, telling her, "Not really. Y'see, Shelby and I don't talk about our relationship too much, but we established early on that we're cool with shit like this. We're sorta open, really."

"Really?" The Legend inquired, raising her eyebrow, intrigued. "I hadn't known that about you two."

I shrugged, replying, "No one does. Only she and I." I paused, chuckling lightly, before continuing, "Although, pretty sure that Zack may think that something's up. She tends to compliment him when it's just the three of us around."

"Interesting." She commented. "I'm sorta surprised by this, really. I had always pegged Shelby as sorta shy about sexuality, and things of that sort."

"Around others, yes." I informed her. "And she was with me, at first. Now, though, she's sorta gotten more used to it."

"As have you, I see." She said. "I remember when you first got here, you barely spoke to anyone. And now you help run the place."

"Yeah, I guess." I agreed, nodding. We were both silent for a few moments, before I sighed, saying, "Listen. I want to apologize for how I acted last night. I shouldn't have exploded at you."

She waved her hand lightly, replying, "Oh, don't worry about it, Shane. I understand that you were just trying to help that Umbreon. It's fine."

"Not really." I insisted, my head drooping towards the floor. "I should have been more cool-headed about it."

I felt Darkrai's hand reach over and rest on my leg, as she told me, "Shane, look at me." I hesitated momentarily, before reluctantly raising my head to look at my Legend, as she said, "Shane, you did nothing wrong. You were acting from your heart, and it saved that Umbreon's life."

Still unconvinced, I looked away, causing the Reaper to let out a sigh.

After a few moments of silence, she rose from her seat, telling me, "Come on." I raised my eyebrow, not moving, so she said, "I told you last night that we'd talk more about Reaper Weapons. So, let's go."

Deciding not to argue, I stood up, following my Legend as we left the room.

"Where are we going?" I asked her, as we went through the hall.

"To the forest." She told me. "I'm going to give you a lesson on Reaper Weapons."

I nodded, walking next to her. Neither of us spoke again until we had left the Hall and found a small clearing in the woods, not too close to the Hall. Darkrai spun around to face me, spawning the folded up Black Rose on her back. She gripped the handle, swinging the weapon open before her.

"This," She told me, "is my Reaper Weapon. Black Rose." She rested the scythe on her shoulder, continuing, "This is the first Reaper Weapon, and one of the only two in existence. The other one, Nightblade, is wielded by the other Reaper, who shall, for now, go unnamed. Reaper Weapons are some of the only weapons able to reap Souls. The other weapons are Reaper Apprentice Weapons. Currently, there are five Apprentices. One wields the chakram duo of Ebony and Ivory. Another, the buster sword named Ripper. Then we have the executioner's axe, Bloodstone, and the saw cleaver, Butcher. Finally, there is the long sword, Black Night. Any specific questions?"

I thought for a moment, before asking, "What's the difference between Reaper Weapons and Apprentice Weapons?"

"A few things." She replied. "First off, Apprentice Weapons aren't Tricks." I raised my eyebrow, confused, so she explained, "Apprentice Weapons only have one form. You saw that Black Rose here can also turn into a lever action rifle. Nightblade, the dual katanas, can also become a pair of Derez Eagles."

"Derez Eagles?" I asked.

"A name that Mew created for the weapons." She told me. "They're Desert Eagles, but have two different ammo types. They can fire normal bullets, or Rez Shots. When those make contact, if the shot would have killed the target, whatever the round hit derezes, or is broken down into particles."

I cringed slightly, commenting, "Sounds sorta brutal."

Darkrai shrugged, saying, "Maybe so. But Daraku's troops didn't fuck around."

"Daraku?" I asked her.

"It's a long story." She replied. "Just don't worry about." I wanted to push her for answers, but she quickly continued, "Second, and possibly most important, Reaper Weapons are made with Souls."

"Seriously?" I asked, intrigued.

"Yep." She replied, nodding. "Here, I'll show you." She reached her arm out, holding Black Rose away from her body, saying, "Rose, come out."

I watched as the scyther turned into a swirling ball in the air, before it slowly started taking shape. After a few moments, the ball had been replaced by a woman about the height of Darkrai, clad in a long black dress.

"Hello." She greeted me, bowing slightly. "I am Rose, the Soul of Darkrai's Reaper Weapon."

"Nice to meet you." I replied, stunned. "I'm-"

"Shane." She cut me off. "Darkrai's Champion. And the best fighter in the Hall, if I remember correctly."

I froze, looking at her in shock, before saying, "I don't know if I'd say best. But how did you know that about me?"

"The words of Darkrai." She informed me. She turned to the Reaper, adding, "And I must agree, Darkrai, he is quite attractive."

I froze, shocked, as Darkrai hastily said, "I think that that's enough talking to Shane now, Rose."

I saw a small smirk cross Rose's lips as she was turned back into the scyther, teleporting onto Darkrai's back.

I stayed silent for a few seconds, before asking, "What was that that she said?"

"N-Nothing." Darkrai stuttered out. "Don't pay attention to her."

I smirked at her reaction, chuckling quietly, but I decided not to bother her about it.

"So, back to Reaper Weapons." She told me. "Anything else?"

I thought about what I would say, before asking, "Other than the aforementioned stuff, what's the difference between Legend and Reaper Weapons?"

"Nothing, really." She told me. "Just those who use them."

I nodded, saying, "Thank you. That's all I wanted to know."

She nodded back to me, replying, "Alright."

We merely stood there for a few moments, silent. After a couple of minutes, Darkrai moved over to stand before me. Without a word, she leaned up to me, giving my lips a quick kiss, which I instinctively returned. When we broke apart, we just stood there, staring at each other.

"You are a good person, Shane." She told me. "And a good fighter. I see an amazing leader in you, and I'm sure that others do, as well. You may not see it, and some others may not want to acknowledge it, but you've done so much for us. You have turned the tides of this fight. I truly believe that you will help us win this fight."

"I'm trying my best." I said. "I'll die before we lose this war."

Darkrai wrapped me in a hug, leaning into my chest, as she spoke, "But I don't want you to die. I refuse to let that happen."


	21. Turning in Side Quests: Part Two

** Turning in Side Quests: Part Two **

I sighed, shaking my head, as Mew entered the Infirmary, her pink fur standing on end.

“Little shit Stun Shot me.” She growled out, struggling to smooth out her fur. “And I fucking made it for him. Bastard.”

“You can’t truly blame him, Mew.” I told her, leaning on one of the hospital beds. “He’s curious.”

She let out her own sigh, agreeing, “I know.” She continued trying to smooth out her fur, adding, “So, you think he knows?”

“I don’t believe so.” I replied. “If he did, then I highly doubt that he would have knocked.”

“True.” She said, nodding.

She continued messing with her fur for a few moments, before abandoning her actions with an annoyed groan.

She came over to stand next to me, looking at the Umbreon on the bed before us, before saying, “I must say, I’m not surprised that you got with him. He is pretty hot.”

I rolled my eyes, telling her, “Shane is the spitting image of him. Must I voice what you’ve implied?”

I glanced over to see the pink cat panic somewhat, before quickly stuttering out, “Sh-Shut up! No one asked you!”

I smirked, replying, “Oh, calm down, Mew. Your secret is safe with me.” I nudged the bed in front of us, adding, “Assuming, of course, that Lex here can’t hear anything.”

“I doubt that he can.” Mew said, calming herself. “But you are right. The two look absurdly similar, even taking into account their relationship. Other than the ring color, they look almost identical. I’m shocked that no one put two and two together.”

“I agree.” I told her. “But I am unbelievably happy that they don’t know.”

“Think that you’ll ever tell him?” She asked me.

I sighed deeply, my eyes to the floor, before answering, “I don’t know, really. Maybe.”

“You should, Arceus.” Mew said. “He needs to know. It’s his life, for fuck’s sake.”

“I know.” I agreed solemnly. “But… But what if he hates me, Mew? He already hate his father, and the human woman he believes to be his mother. Can you imagine how he’d react if I told him?”

“I know.” She told me. “But he needs to know. Isn’t being the object of his hatred due to the truth at least somewhat better than forcing him to live in the dark?”

I hesitated slightly, before answering, “I… I don’t know.” I felt the first tears begin to roll down my cheeks as I continued, “He deserves to know. But I couldn’t live knowing that my only son hates me. I already have to live knowing that we can never have the relationship that I desire with him due to it being a secret, but never being able to have it due to him hating me… That’s just too much. I couldn’t go on.”

As I finished my sentence, I felt the tears come down in earnest, soaking my white fur.

I suddenly felt Mew wrap me in a hug, telling me, “I’m sorry, Arceus. I didn’t mean to upset you. I just… I guess that it’s hard to understand where you’re coming from. I mean, I’ve never had to go through this before. He doesn’t have to know if you don’t want to tell him.”

I sighed, replying, “N-No, Mew. You’re right. I’ll tell him. But after this is all done.”

She nodded against me, as she said, “Okay. You can then.” She released, my tears slowing slightly, before telling, “Now, go. You should get some rest. You haven’t slept since he got here. I’ll wake you if his status changes.”

I nodded, replying, “Thank you, Mew.” I started for the door, before adding, “If he’s awake by tonight, we must return him to where they brought him from. The longer he’s here, the more risk there is of Shane finding out.”

“Got it!” Mew called to me, as I opened the door. “I’ll tell ESTR to set the portal up.”

“Thank you, Mew.” I told her. “For everything.”

She turned to me, replying, “Of course, Arceus. What are friends for?”

“And you’re my oldest one.” I added.

She nodded to me, and I nodded back, before exiting the room, closing the door behind me. I started down the hall, quickly working on drying my tears. I can’t let anyone know that I’ve been crying. That’s unacceptable. The streaks in my fur, I can do nothing about, though. I slowly made my way through the Hall, wrapped in thought. As I passed Giratina’s room, I heard multiple voices, prompting me to stop. I pressed my ear to the door, listening intently.

“Of course I do.” I heard a booming male voice reply.

Giratina is in his true form? What prompted this?

“I had sent my other Reaper after you when it happened.”  He continued, piquing my interest even more. “Darkrai just happened to get there first. He always did have a knack for knowing my next move.”

W-Wait? Is he… Talking to Shane? So, I was correct. Giratina knows as well. Not that I should be surprised. It is in the job description.

“Don’t act like that hasn’t been for the greater good, though.” A female voice interjected.

Korra is here? I should drop by if she’s here later and say hello. It’s been a while since we’ve seen each other.

“He and Mew have always been a good team.” She pointed out.

Darkrai and Mew? Is she… Is she talking about with Lucas? That was ages ago. I can’t blame her for remembering though. That moment… It was a truly dark moment for her family. Revealing what happened to Ace. His escape from Hell. It still feels odd calling him his true name during that portion of his life. Or death, to be more blunt. His family was truly broken after that night. Had he not come back, I doubt that his fiance would have recovered.I shook my head, clearing these thoughts.No. I should go to my room. I need sleep.I left Giratina’s door, starting towards my door. I reached it shortly, opening the door just enough to enter, before slipping into the dark room.I really need to talk to Mew about the design of this place. I can’t believe that we never thought about natural lighting when we were building it. We even had guests at that time, and no one mentioned it.I shrugged to myself, moving to my bed. Without another thought, I dropped onto my bed, falling asleep as soon as I hit the pillow.

* * *

I slowly opened my eyes, feeling something rocking my body.

“C’mon, Arceus.” I heard Mew’s voice say. “It’s almost four in the morning. We’ve gotta drop him off.”

I brought my eyes to Mew, who was standing at my torso, telling her, “I’m up, Mew. Thank you for waking me.”

The cat nodded as I stood up, replying, “Of course. He woke up about an hour or so ago, but we felt it best that you sleep.”

I nodded to her, saying, “Thank you, Mew. I hadn’t really realized how tired I was until I got here, I guess.”

The pink Legend chuckled, telling me, “Yeah, exhaustion can do that to you. We’ve already given him a meal, and told him what happened.”

“Who is ‘we’?” I inquired

“Myself, Articuno, and Celebi.” She told me. “And, before you ask, no, neither of us have told Celebi who he is. She’s in the dark.”

I nodded to her, saying, “Thank you, Mew. Now, shall we go?”

She nodded back, answering, “Lead the way.”

We left my room, moving quickly through the dark Hall.

“By the way, Mew, I need to talk to you about the Hall of Origins.” I spoke up.

“Oh?” She asked. “What about it?”

“The lack of natural light.” I told her. “We need more windows. Or skylights. It feels to cramped.”

Mew giggled next to me, commenting, “Arceus, you never change. We’re in the middle of a war, and you’re worried about the aesthetics of the Hall.” I chuckled quietly, as she told me, “But, yeah, I’ll look into it. If we can get the resources, which won’t be hard, I can have windows in each outward facing room and skylights in all others in a few months. We can even replace the ceiling of the hallways with glass.”

“You could speak to Jasmine for help with that.” I offered. “She’s rather engineering inclined.”

“Is she?” Mew asked, intrigued. “I hadn’t known that.” She sighed quietly, adding, “I wish that I could convince Coreth to take an interest in it. She’s not too in to electronics, though.”

“How is her training going, if you don’t mind me asking?” I said. “I don’t see you two spending too much time together.”

“Her training is going fine.” She told me. “And I’m trying to spend more time with her. But sometimes it’s just infuriating.”

“Oh?” I asked. “Why so?”

“Because she fucking loves insulting Shane.” She sighed. “She doesn’t hate me for being friends with him, but she hates him.”

“I’m sure that she’ll come around eventually.” I told the distressed cat, ignoring the pang of anger caused by Mew’s statement. “Just try and talk to her. Maybe she feels that you like Shane more than her, due to how much time you spend together?”

“Yeah, maybe.” She agreed. “I can try that. Thanks.”

I nodded to her, as we reached the door to the Infirmary. I knocked on the door, before going in. Upon entering, I saw Articuno and Celebi standing against the wall, with Lex straightening up his coat beside his bed. I said nothing, merely motioning for Articuno and Lex to join us.

Celebi went to follow, but Mew told her, “We can take it from here, Cel. You can go back to sleep.”

The Guardian of the Forest sent her a confused look, before slowly replying, “If you say so. I’ll start cleaning up in here when you guys leave.”

I nodded to her, as Articuno and Lex joined us at the door. I left the room, leading our small party down the hall, the door closing behind us. We went through the semi-darkness, Mew and I leading the way, and Articuno and Lex in the back.

After a few moments of silence, Lex moved up to walk next to me, asking, “So, that Umbreon was him?”

I nodded slightly, replying, “Yes. And Darkrai, his Champion.”

“Odd to think that he lives here.” He commented. “Grateful as fuck that he saved my life.”

“Yeah.” I agreed. “Luck that he and his team was there.”

There was more silence, before the Umbreon told me, “I’m sorry, Arceus.”

“For what?” I asked him, raising an eyebrow. “We parted on good terms, out of a mutual agreement.”

“That’s not what I’m apologizing for.” He said. “I’m sorry that you have to live here with him, not being able to tell him the truth. And I’m sorry for how he got here.”

I looked at him questioningly, asking him in shock, “You know?”

“Of course I do.” He told me. “I saw the papers. They didn’t publish the name, but I recognized him. How could I not?”

I sighed quietly, speaking, “Mew, Articuno, listen up. You are about to hear something that may shock you, but I must urge you to keep it a secret. No one can know. If others discovered how much Darkrai tampered with the world, it could be horrendous.” I didn’t wait for a response, next addressing Lex, “I’m sorry for that. Seeing the obituary can’t have been easy on you.”

“It was far easier than I wish it was.” He answered, ignoring the shocked gasps from behind us. “It’s not truly the thought that he jumped that hurts me, it’s… It’s knowing that I helped cause it. He ran away because he wasn’t happy, for whatever reason. Had I been there… Had I stayed with Emari, and not run away with that woman who I left days later, then maybe, just maybe, he wouldn’t have left. Maybe he’d still be alive. And our family wouldn’t be broken.”

“It’s been broken, Lex.” I told him. “You and I should have stayed together. We shouldn’t have done what we did. Had we made better decisions, then he wouldn’t have ever been unhappy with his parents.”

He sighed, saying, “I know. Do you know what happened that made him leave her?”

I hesitated for a few moments, before replying, “She… She beat him. She drank. Did drugs. Spent all of her money on her vices. Then when she got home, she’d hit him. He rarely ate. He earned everything on his own. One day, he got tired of it. He left while she was passed out on the couch.”

The Umbreon growled in anger, telling me, “That useless bitch of a woman. I hate her and every fucking thing she ever meant to me. If I get my fucking hands on her-”

“Don’t bother.” I interrupted. “She’s been dead for quite some time now. Heroin overdose. About two years after Shane left her.”

“Death is far too good for her.” Lex growled out. “For what she did to Shane, she deserves to suffer.”

“Maybe so.” I commented. “But that isn’t how you would have replied when we parted. What happened to you, Lex? It’s been so long since we spoke, and you’ve changed so much.”

He sighed, before replying, “Making mistakes can change you. I left Emari, and that was one of the worst decisions of my life. When I realized what I had done, I left her. I couldn’t stand to see her. I couldn’t even look at myself without getting pissed. I wanted to go back, but I knew that I couldn’t. She wouldn’t take me. So I got out of the Mesa. I had to, if I wanted to change who I was. I became a Freedom Fighter. I thought about the Champions, and I knew that I had to join the efforts. I just wanted to end all of this. Even if I would never be able to see my son again, I knew that he deserves a free life.”

“Very noble of you.” I commented.

“Not really.” He scoffed. “It was fueled by self hatred. Trying to atone, for lack of a better term.”

“That may be so.” I countered. “But even the noblest of actions don’t have to have the most noble reasons.”

He sighed, nodding his head sadly, “I guess so. I just… I just wish that I could see him. Tell him I love him. And that I’m sorry for what I did. Even if he didn’t forgive me, even if he beat the living shit out of me, I’d just want him to know.” He chuckled quietly, adding, “Hell, I probably deserve to get the shit beaten out of me. If anyone does, it’s me. And I’d let him do it, too.”

I stopped, as we reached the door to the Teleporter room, turning to Lex.

I wrapped him in a hug, surprising the Shiny Umbreon, who quickly returned the embrace, resting his chin on my head, as I told him, “You don’t deserve it. You’re sorry for what you’ve done, and that’s what matters. You aren’t the villain here, Lex.”

Before he could speak, I leaned up to him, my lips meeting his. He softly returned the kiss, holding me close. We held the embrace for only a few seconds, before breaking apart. We wordlessly stepped into the room, Articuno and Mew following behind us.This may be the last time I see him. And I don’t even get one more night with him. Please, please let me see him once this is over. Maybe then… Maybe then we can all be together. As a family.

* * *

** P.O.V Change: Shane **

I looked around me, confused at the surrounding shadows. Where… Where am I? As the seconds ticked past, the darkness cleared away, revealing a hauntingly familiar room. W-What? Why am I here? Slowly, the entire room was revealed, leaving me standing in the kitchen/living room combo of my old apartment. What the hell? Is… Is this a dream? I watched as a happy woman danced around the kitchen to music that only she could hear. She was preparing dinner, or what could be called dinner. Due to the Organization’s work, she was merely fixing a small pot of broth and vegetables, but she had a smile on her face the entire time. Y-Yeah. I remember that. Arceus, I was so young. Can’t have been more than one or two years old. But we were happy. Poor as all hell, but happy. My eyes then moved to a small Umbreon child that sat on one of the counters, his eyes watching the woman dance around. The woman grabbed a wooden spoon from the cookware rack, moving back to the pot on the stove. She dipped the spoon in, taking out a small amount, before tasting it.

“Delicious.” She complimented herself, smiling at the soup. She turned back to the small Umbreon, asking, “Shane, would you like to try some?”

I couldn’t help but smile as the younger version of me nodded his head happily, his ears flopping around as he did so. Heh, I remember that. Arceus, my ears were disproportionate. Always flopped around whenever I moved. The woman smiled back at him, before bringing a spoon full of soup to his mouth. The younger me quickly slurped it up, ending it with a small burp, causing both me and my mother to chuckle.

“I’ll take that as a compliment.” She joked, putting the spoon on the counter. Suddenly, the door near me made a clicking noise, as if a key had been turned in it, causing the woman to comment, “Oh, sounds like daddy’s home, Shane. Then, we can have dinner.”

The Umbreon giggled happily as the door opened, and a figure stepped in. The woman ran over to the figure and wrapped him in a hug, but the man existed only as a shadow to me. What the hell? Why can’t I see who my father is? Why is the rest of this memory so vivid?

“How was your day, honey?” The woman asked them shadow.

I heard him reply, but it only came out as garbled speech, unintelligible to me.

“Oh, I’m sorry.” She told him. “Want a massage after dinner? You must be so stressed.”

The shadow’s answer was again garbled to me, as he made his way to the kitchen. When he got there, he picked up the small Umbreon, holding the giggling past version of me up, before hugging him tightly. Arceus, I wish I could be that happy again. I don’t think that I can ever be like that, though. That’s no longer who I am. Now, I’m a killer.

The woman came up behind her husband, commenting, “He missed you today. Kept wanting to play with you.”

This time, when the shadow replied, I could understand a chuckle from him, but the rest was nothing to me. As the form held the Umbreon, he wrapped an arm around his wife, pulling her into a three person hug. When this happened, the memory/dream froze, everything stopping. As I watched, the shadowy form of my father slowly began clearing, revealing his identity to me. As the face and body were shown to me, I gasped at the sight.No… It’s him!My eyes traced over the being before me, catching on the Umbreon’s blue rings, before locking onto his eyes.No!

* * *

I shot up in my bed, jolting my arm out from under Shelby. Without thinking, I lept over my girlfriend, landing on the floor perfectly. I quickly pulled on my boots and a shirt, attaching Strife and Fair out of habit.

“Sh-Shane?” Shelby groggily spoke, raising from my bed in the dark. “What are you doing?”

“Don’t worry about it, Shelby.” I told her, grabbing my phone. “Go back to sleep.”

I checked the time on my phone, seeing how early it was. Only three after four. Arceus, I hope he’s still here.

“Shane, you know that I won’t take that as an answer.” She countered, fully sitting up, causing the blanket to drop off of her, exposing her bare breasts. “What is going on?”

“Don’t worry about it.” I repeated, going to the door.

I left without another word, dashing out into the hall. I sprinted to the Infirmary, taking only seconds to reach it. I burst into the room, freezing as I saw only the shocked Celebi sitting on one of the beds.

“Where is Lex at?” I urged, suddenly remembering his name. “Where is he!”

“Th-They just took him.” The Legend rushed out, shocked.

“Who?” I asked. “And when?”

“Arceus, Mew, and Articuno.” She replied. “They left to take him to the Teleporter room only a few minutes ago. Why does it ma-”

Before she could finish, I left the doorway, running down the hall. Oh, please don’t let them be done. Let me catch him before he goes. It took me only a minute to reach the room, where I came to a skidding halt.

“Sorry that we can’t give you a coat or anything.” I heard Mew say on the other side. “It started snowing there earlier today.”

“Oh, it’s fine.” Lex’s voice replied. “Besides, it’s almost March. Should stop by then, anyway.”

Without waiting for another word, I burst into the room, causing everyone to freeze, their eyes on me.

We stood in silence for a moment, before Arceus gasped out, “Shit. He knows! Go!”

Lex nodded quickly, leaping into the glowing portal before him. I took off across the room, barreling through the three Legends as they tried to block me, knocking them to the floor.

“Shane, no!” I heard Arceus shout at me, but I ignored it.

I reached the portal, flinging myself into it, my vision becoming nothing but light.


	22. Kobra Kid and Jet-Star

** Kobra Kid and Jet-Star **

I flew to the ground, my arms wrapping around the Shiny Umbreon, dropping him with me. We slid across the fresh snow some, sending us onto our backs. As Lex let out a groan from the tackle, I leapt onto him, straddling his waist. He slowly blinked below me, shaking his head, clearing the snow off of his ears. With that finished, he locked his eyes with me, yet we both kept silent.

“So,” he spoke, breaking the silence, “I see that you know.”

I nodded, replying, “Took me some time, but I found out. I know that you’re my father, Lex.”

He sighed at my response, closing his eyes sadly.

“Very well.” He said. “Go ahead.”

“Go ahead?” I asked him. “With what?”

“Hurting me.” He told me somberly. “I know that you must hate me for leaving you with her. I know that you can’t stand the thought of me. So, go ahead. Bludgeon me. Abuse me. Kill me, for all I care. I deserve it.”

I opened my mouth to respond, but I froze at the sound of approaching footsteps, as well as a few vehicles.

“What the fuck is that?” I asked the open air.

* * *

** P.O.V Change: Mew **

“Shit!” I shouted, getting to my feet. “Shit, shit, shit, shit!”

Without waiting for the others to rise, I dashed over to the counter next to the teleporter, immediately sweeping my fingers across the lip.

“How could he have found out?” Articuno questioned, standing up.

“Doesn’t matter.” I replied, searching desperately for my target.

“He’s quite a smart kid.” Arceus commented. “I had assumed that he would have found out earlier.”

“True.” Articuno agreed. She then turned to me, asking, “Mew, what in the world are you looking for?”

“This!” I shouted, finding the button with my and.

I slammed the button in, backing up slightly as the counter began shifting. The top itself flipped over, turning into a computer keyboard, while the wall behind it slid open, revealing a screen between the cabinet and shelf above. I watched the screen, seeing the two Umbreon look around their snowy clearing, worried.

“How the fuck did they find us?” Shane shouted, as headlights flooded the ground.

“How should I know?” Lex shot back.

“Fuck!” I yelled, watching the scene unfold. “After the attack on the base, they must have monitered the area for any unusual activity! We sent them into a death trap!”

“Sent who?” A female voice sounded behind me.

I whipped around, freezing as I saw a Flareon standing in the doorway of the room. No one responded. We just stood there, frozen.

“Mew, who is in a death trap?” She asked again, her tone giving away her suspicions.

We didn’t respond, so Shelby rushed over to me, her eyes immediately gluing to the screen.

“Shane!” She shouted, shocked. She whipped to me, asking, “Where is he? And who is he with?”

I hesitated for a moment, before stuttering out, “H-He’s surrounded by the Organization, by the base that he and his team hit recently.” I took a deep breath, steadying myself, before finishing, “And he’s with Lex Contor. His father.”

I watched the Flareon’s face morph into one of both shock and fear, before Articuno added, “And he doesn’t have a return pad. And we can’t send in any others.”

* * *

** P.O.V Change: Shane **

I quickly scanned the area around us, seeing that we were essentially surrounded by the Organization, with both small arms and vehicle mounted weapons aimed at us.

Thinking rapidly, I asked Lex, “Where are we right now?”

“B-By the base where you found me.” He replied. “About a mile south.”

I nodded, mentally mapping the area.

“Alright.” I told him. “On the count of three.”

“W-What?” He asked me. “On the count of three what?”

“One.” I said, not moving.

“What are you doing, Shane?” He asked.

“Two.” I said, ignoring him.

“Son, what is this?” He inquired, as the soldiers around us began moving in.

“Three!” I shouted, leaping to my feet.

As I got up, I grabbed Lex’s hand, pulling him up. Holding onto his hand tightly, I dashed toward the opening in the soldiers, using their surprise at my actions to our advantage.

“Follow me!” I shouted to my father, as we broke out of the clearing and bullets started flying.

Without another word, I dashed through the woods, heading for a specific location. Every now and then, I looked back, confirming that my companion was keeping pace with me. As we ran, lead flew past us, cutting into the barren branches and imbedding themselves in the trunks of trees. Keep going! We’re close! I suddenly felt a sharp sting hit my right arm, near my elbow. Stunned, I looked down, to see blood starting to ooze from a hole in my flesh.

“Son of a bitch!” I shouted, returning my gaze to my course before me, as I saw the dark cabin ahead of us.

I made it to the door first, with Lex joining me shortly.

He immediately tried the door and found it to be locked, so he began beating on the door, shouting, “Help us! Please, let us in!”

A small piece of the wood door slid back, revealing a set of eyes, as a voice told us, “I apologize, but the owners of this cabin have given us strict orders to not allow any visitors while they are away. You see, they are away, vacationing on the Seadom Islands.”

The Shiny Umbreon next to me growled, as I held my injured arm, followed by him shouting at the Luxray, “I don’t fucking care! Let us in! We’re being attacked!”

As he spoke, I both saw and heard the soldiers approaching, the headlights shining through the leafless trees.

“You must not have heard me, sir-” Came the reply, but I interrupted him.

“Damn it, Archimedes.” I growled out. “Open the fucking door this instant!”

Leonardo hesitated for a moment, before answering, “Yes, sir.”

I heard the sound of clicking and sliding locks, and we tumbled into the lit cabin, causing me to stumble slightly. As Lex slammed the door shut, redoing all of the locks, I locked my eyes with Leonardo, shooting him a glare, telling him to keep quiet for now.

“Honey, why did you open the door?” Came the voice of his wife, as she leaned out of the bedroom, their sons at her feet.

“All of you, get in that bedroom.” I commanded, moving to the fireplace. I opened up the hidden number pad, adding, “You won’t want to be in here when I open these shutters.”

Leonardo froze for a second, before wordlessly rushing his family into the second room.

“Lex, hit the button by the door.” I ordered, typing a code into the number pad.

“Shane, you’re hurt.” He said, coming over to me.

“I’ll live.” I growled out. “But none of us will if you don’t get these shutters away from the windows. Now, hit the button.”

He hesitated for a moment, before complying, moving over to the door. He pressed the red button on the wall, causing the metal shutters over the windows to fold down, allowing the headlights to flood into the cabin. I punched the enter button on the keypad, causing the screen to glow green. I stepped back, watching as a panel above the lit fireplace flipped open, revealing two weapons. I grabbed the black AK-47, chucking the white ACR to Lex, who caught it with ease.

“Know how to use it?” I asked him, moving over to the window.

“Of course.” He told me. “I’ve heard that you’re one hell of Champion. Don’t think that none of that is hereditary.”

I chuckled quietly, sliding into cover below the window to the left of the door, as Lex did the same on the right.

“Infinite ammo. No need to reload the clip.” I told him. “And I don’t want to kick your ass.”

“You fucking should.” He told me, as the shouting of the soldiers grew closer.

“Well, I don’t.” I told him, just before a bullet flew above my head. I cursed under my breath as the wind whipped around my ear, before saying, “I could never want to kick my father’s ass.”

Lex raised up some, sending a few bullets down range, asking me, “Why the fuck not? After what you were forced to go through with that bitch, you should want me dead for leaving you.”

I sent a burst of rounds at our enemies, their shouts telling me that I hit a few, before answering, “Because I have no need to. Besides, think about what would have happened had you stayed. I wouldn’t have become Arceus’s second in command, and I wouldn’t be able to make a difference in the world.”

“But we would have stayed a family.” He retorted, blind firing over the window sill. “You wouldn’t have been abused. You wouldn’t have run away. And you never would have tried to kill yourself.”

“You think I give a shit about any of that?” I shot back, launching a burst of bullets out of the cabin. “Besides, none of that matters now. It didn’t fucking happen. This is the world that we live in, and these are the cards that I was dealt.” My words cut off as a burst of bullets flew over me, prompting me to duck, before I let out a sigh, saying, “Listen, what I’m trying to say is that I love you, dad.”

Lex froze, his eyes locked on me, before a smile spread across his face, and he replied, “I love you, son.”

I smiled back, before launching a volley of rounds over my shoulder.

My father groaned, exclaiming, “We can’t possibly kill all of them! We need an escape.”

I thought for a moment, before reaching into my pocket, pulling out my phone.

“What are you doing?” He asked me, surprised. “A cab won’t come in here to get us.”

“No.” I agreed, scrolling through my contacts, before calling one on speakerphone. I sat the phone on the floor next to me, adding, “But I know someone who will.”

I ignored the confused look on my father’s face, as I leaned up to launch shots downrange, bringing a few more soldiers down.

“C’mon, pick the fuck up.” I growled out, as Lex started firing out of the window.

After a few more seconds, I heard a click, followed by a familiar voice coming from my phone saying, “Hey, Shane, me brudda. Watchu need dis late at night?”

“Rico?” Lex exclaimed, shocked.

“Eh?” The Zangoose questioned. “Lex? What are mah two best clients doin togetha?”

“I’ll explain later.” I interrupted. “Right now, we’re in trouble. We’re pinned down at Archimedes’s shack. Fuck ton of soldiers, and we need back up and an evac.”

“Oh, is dat all?” He joked sarcastically. “Hell, man, I’ll see what I can do. But, keep in mind, it’s fuckin late and very few of my guys will be awake, let alone down dat way.”

“I know.” I told him. “Just do what you can.”

“Will do.” He replied, as Lex and I both shot rounds out of the window. There came the sound of clacking keys, followed by Rico telling me, “Ah, it’s your lucky day, brutha. Got two of my guys in the area already. I can get them in, dey clear the LZed, and I swoop in in a Osprey or somethin of the likes. Sound good?”

“Oh, hell yeah.” I told him, sighing with relief. “Rico, I so fucking owe you.”

“Nah, don’t worry ‘bout it.” He told me. “You’re still up on five life saves on me. That, and you’ve helped more of my men than I can count. You’re just lucky dat I been binge watchin somethin wicked.”

I chuckled, answering, “If you say so, man. Thanks.”

“Yep.” He replied. “I’ll come out in a bird, and I’ll get my boys on their way. Kobra Kid and Jet-Star will be dere shortly.”

I smiled at the names, saying, “Thanks, man. See you shortly.”

* * *

** P.O.V Change: Jet-Star **

I pulled my phone from my pocket, intrigued. _It’s fucking four in the morning? Who’s hitting me?_ I checked the ID, nodding understandingly, as I took another swig from my vodka.

“Hey, Kobra!” I shouted over the music coming from our motorcycles. “It’s the Boss.”

The Zoroark nodded, turning the music down, pulling his black and green helmet off, revealing his toxic green tipped hair.

I hit to answer the call, putting it on speaker, saying, “Hey, what’s up Boss?”

“Got a job for you two.” He spoke. “Got a couple of friends in need of help. You two da closest.”

I nodded, watching the smile cross Kobra Kid’s face as he revved his black and green bike up.

“Sounds good.” I answered, nodding. “What the situation?”

“Pinned down at a cabin not too far from yah.” He told us, as Kobra slid his helmet back on. “Sound like a fuck ton of Organization. You’re clearing the LZed, ‘n I’m comin in for the pickup. Got it?”

I chuckled, patting the side of my black and silver bike, responding, “Oh, hell yeah. Wish we had Poison with us, though. That motherfucker has been itching to go out again.”

“I know.” Rico agreed. “He can soon, though. Remember, these guys are two of my best clients. One has saved me more times than I can count.”

“Relax, Boss.” I assured him, my eyes on the helmet that matches my bike. “We’ve got it all covered.” I ended the call, returning my phone to my baggie black jeans, telling Kobra, “You heard him. Bring out all of the stops. Hit them with all we’ve got.”

He nodded eagerly as I smirked at him, before slipping on my helmet, covering my silver tipped hair.

“Now then,” I said, revving my own engine, “let’s get to work.”

* * *

**P.O.V Change: Shane**

I froze as I heard more motors incoming, and Lex did the same.

“Think that’s them?” He asked me.

“Arceus, I hope so.” I replied, peeking over the window sill.

As I watched, two motorcycles leapt in, one black and green, and the other black and silver, with the drivers clad in clothing matching their bikes. Both bikers pulled out a glass bottle, which they promptly set ablaze. The duo split apart, launching the molotov cocktails at the soldiers, setting them on fire. The two then pressed a button on their bikes, causing a chain to drop from the bike, dragging behind the vehicle. They whipped the chains around, sending them flying into the soldiers, the force slicing the first one hit in half, and knocking the others down. Lex and I watched the two work, eliminating most of the soldiers surrounding us. After a few minutes, I began to hear blades whirring above us. I looked outside, seeing a giant Osprey slowly touching down in front of the cabin.

I rushed over to the bedroom door, throwing it open and shouting in, “C’mon, our evac is here.”

Without waiting for a reply, I whipped around, dashing outside into the slowly spreading sunrise. I ran up to the back of the bird, where Kobra Kid and Jet-Star were already waiting, still on their bikes. Lex and the others quickly joined me, as the back opened up. We all wordlessly moved into the cargo hold, with Kobra and Jet getting off of their bikes by the door, Leonardo’s family sitting on the floor near the front, and Lex and I sitting together by the door.

I let out a sigh of relief as we took off, saying, “Fuck, today has been stressful.”

“You’re telling me, man.” Came a chuckling voice, prompting me to look up, to see that the black and silver wearer was standing above me, his helmet off. The Zoroark flipped his tipped hair, introducing himself, “Jet-Star. Guy in green is my brother, Kobra Kid.”

I chuckled, joking, “You wouldn’t happen to have two other siblings, would you?”

He smiled at me as his brother stood beside him, answering, “I see you get the names. Nice. Anyway, yeah, we do.” The duo sat down across from us, and Jet asked, “So, you’re Shane, right?” I nodded, so he added, “Heard a lot about you.”

“Probably about how many times I’ve saved your boss.” I told him. “But, yeah, I’m Shane.” I motioned to Lex, saying, “This is Lex. He…” I trailed off, before a wide smile spread across my face, and I finished, “He’s my father.”

Jet smiled back, saying, “Alright, man. Nice to meet you.” He stood up, Kobra joining him, and told me, “We’ll leave you two to it, then. Need anything, we’ll be in the cockpit.”

I nodded as the walked away, leaning against the wall of the cargo hold.

“Arceus, today has been one hell of a day.” Lex voiced.

“Yeah.” I agreed, sighing. I hesitated a moment, before adding, “Nice to actually have my father back, though. I missed you, even though I barely know you.”

Lex smiled at me, replying, “I missed you too.” He suddenly yawned, before saying, “Now, how about we get some sleep?”

I chuckled, nodding, and answered, “Sounds good. I’m fucking tired.”

With that, I leaned my head back against the metal, sighing contentedly. _Well, I’m stranded away from the Hall, with no way of getting back. But, hey, at least I have my dad._


	23. And So It Begins

** And So It Begins **

I jolted awake, wincing as my head connected sharply with metal. I rubbed the back of my head, slowly blinking my eyes open. I looked around, confused as to why I sat in the cargo hold of a plane, across from two motorcycles. I became aware of an arm wrapped around my shoulders, prompting me to turn to my side, causing everything to come rushing back to me. Oh. Right. I’m on an Osprey with my father, Leonardo’s family, Rico, and half of the Killjoys. and I have a hole in my arm, and no way back to the Hall. Speaking of which… I glanced down at my injured arm, only to see that any blood was washed off, with a bandage wrapped around my arm. On the bandage, I noticed a silver star, with a black lightning bolt flashing behind it.

“Like the patch job?” I heard a voice chuckle, drawing my attention. I looked up as the silver haired Zoroark sat down across from me with a small grunt, adding, “Did it myself. Not the best, really, but you shouldn’t get an infection, and you aren’t bleeding.”

“Thanks.” I replied, nodding. “I sorta forgot about it with all that happened last night.”

“Understandable.” He told me, nodding back. He laughed quietly, continuing, “One time, when all four of us were taking on some Organization, I took two rounds, one in the shoulder and a second in the leg. Kept fucking fighting, though. Didn’t remember them for about a day. Arceus, Rico was pissed. Told me to be more careful, that I could’ve died.” He shrugged, finishing, “But I didn’t. Lucky for you, I guess. Otherwise, you may not have made it outta there.”

I chuckled, agreeing, “Yeah, I guess. You and Kobra really came through.” I sighed quietly, rubbing the back of my head, before adding, “So, sounds like Rico really cares about you guys.”

“Of course he does.” Jet said. “Hell, we’re all we have anymore. After they got mom…” He trailed off at the end, a frown forming on his face, but he quickly shook his head, the smile returning as he told me, “Anyway, we’re getting close to where Rico’s dropping you off.” He got up, turning to walk away, adding over his shoulder, “If you need anything, the three of us are in the cockpit. Nice meeting you, Shane.”

“You too, Jet.” I told him, nodding.

With that, he walked to the front of the cargo hold, disappearing through a door. So, they’re his family? I hadn’t known that he had one. I glanced over near the door, my eyes falling on Leonardo and his family. I sighed deeply, seeing the family sleep together. I need to go talk to him. Explain what happened. I slid Lex’s arm off of me, before getting to my feet, grunting at the strain that I put on my injured arm. I stretched slightly once on my feet, popping my back. With that done, I started down the hold, heading for Leonardo. When I reached him, I bent down slightly, shaking him. He slowly opened his eyes, looking at me as I nodded toward the opposite wall. He nodded back, rising to his feet. The Luxray followed me to the point I had indicated, a good distance away from his family.

“So, Umbreon,” he said somewhat harshly, crossing his arms, “I assume that you intend on explaining what exactly just happened?”

“Yes.” I replied, nodding. I sighed quietly, before telling him, “This may be somewhat hard to believe, but I am X.”

“And why should I believe you?” He asked me. “All I know is that you are some Umbreon who burst into my Safe House and got into a gunfight.”

I sighed, answering, “Possibly because I knew that you’re cover was bullshit? Or that I called you Archimedes? Or how about the fact that I knew the code to the hidden weapons that not even you knew were there? Or, if that isn’t enough, how about the fact that I have yet to kill you, despite the fact that the Organization has a ten fucking thousand dollar bounty on your fucking head?” I glared at him, my frustration beginning to show, as I added, “Is that enough fucking proof for you?”

“Alright!” He defended, throwing his hands up. “I apologize for questioning you.” I nodded to him, as he continued, “So, may I ask why you are without your mask? And why you brought the Organization to our Safe House?”

“I don’t have my mask because I was not out on a mission.” I explained. “And I brought them there because I was being attacked, and needed a place to fight them off from.” I paused for a moment, before adding, “And, needless to say, you can’t tell anyone about who I am. That information gets out, and the results will be catastrophic.”

He nodded to me, a hint of fear in his eyes, as he replied, “Yeah, of course. Don’t worry about it. Your secret is safe with me.” I nodded back to him, and he asked me, “So, where will my family go now?”

“Rico and I have multiple other Safe Houses set up for occasions like this.” I told him. “After he drops Lex and I off wherever he’s taking us, I’ll have him take you to one of the other ones.”

He nodded, saying, “Thank you, X. Now, if it is alright with you, I’d like to return to my family.”

“Of course.” I told him, nodding. “Go ahead.”

He nodded curtly, before turning around and returning to his wife and kids. I let out a quiet, longing sigh as he sat down. Arceus, I wsih that I could have something like that. A true family. Instead, I have an alcoholic mother that died a while back, and a vigilante father. I’m not much better, though. I sighed again, turning away from the four Pokemorphs. Deciding to go and check up on our progress with Rico, I went over to the door to the cockpit. I turned the handle, swinging the door back. I stepped into the small room that it opened into, before going over to the door across from me. Upon opening this, I stepped into the cockpit, a small room with Rico and both Zoroarks sitting in three of the four chairs.

Upon entering, Jet-Star turned to face me, calling out, “Hey, Shane. What’s up?”

I nodded to him, replying, “Just wanted to drop in. Ask where we’re going, really.”

“Ya-an Tabiir.” Rico answered. “A small town in da Zan-Yaneer Desert. You ever been dere?”

“Not really.” I said. “Should I have?”

“Actually, no.” Jet told me. “You see, Ya-an Tabiir, as well as most of the towns in the Zan-Yaneer desert aren’t all that controlled by the Organization. Due to this, they are essentially run by Gangs and Cartels in the area. Y’know, more like how the world was before the Organization took over.”

“Oh, stop wit’ dat.” Rico scolded him. “Not all of de world was run by mad men and sociopaths.”

“Fair enough.” The Zoroark acknowledged. “But, you guys are slowly turning the world back to how it used to be. I mean, you ever go back to some of the smaller towns and cities you’ve helped? Some have revolted against the Organization and taken their lives back.”

“And the Organization hasn’t been allowing it to be reported on the news so that it doesn’t inspire any other places to rebel, as well.” I filled in.

Rico chuckled, saying, “Got it in one, kid. But, news has traveled to some places. Most of da time da rebels are defeated, but we’ve had a few successes. An’ a few places further up north, in da tundras, don’t have no Organization control there. Dey jus’ function like da world did prior to dese assholes taking over.”

“So why haven’t you taken out the Cartels and Gangs yet?” I asked him. “I mean, you guys obviously work on your own, as well.”

“Because they’re the reason that the Organization hasn’t moved in.” Jet informed me. “These guys, they’re fucking brutal. They torture and murder, they get into gunfights in the streets. They sell drugs and torch buildings. But, they respect the people. We don’t attack, but we monitor. In the past ten years, all of these Gangs and Cartels have been linked to three civilian deaths, accumulatively. And all of them have been unintentional.”

“Therefore, we let ‘em stay.” Rico finished. “Dey step outta line, and we’ll drop ‘em. Till then, though, they live. Easier on us that way.”

I nodded, replying, “I can see that. Once this is all over, though, they should be taken care of.”

Jet scoffed, retorting, “If this is ever all over. I mean, fucking look at this shit! The world went to Hell in a handbasket long ago. I doubt that there’s any real way of pulling it back.”

“Stop it wit’ that talk, Jet.” Rico scolded him, the Zangoose shooting his son a glare. “All it takes is fightin’, and we’ll be free.”

“Whatever you say.” The Zoroark sighed out, rolling his eyes. “This fight just seems futile.”

“That may be so.” I told him. “We may never see the world as a free one. But that isn’t the point. If nothing else, then we can at least help inspire the future generations to fight. Even if we don’t win, someone else will. And that’s what we do. We have to show that the people won’t be trampled and downtrodden.”

Jet-Star sighed again, replying, “Arceus, man, I wish that I shared your optimism.”

“You’ll see.” I said, turning back to the door. “You’ll see that they won’t last forever. The good guys will always win.”

Before anyone could answer, I stepped out, closing the door. I stepped back into the cargo hold, returning to my sleeping father, deciding to try and sleep a little more before we landed.

* * *

** P.O.V Change: Shelby **

I took a sip of my coffee, mentally cursing my constantly tapping foot.

“Shelby, I’m sure that he’s fine.” Mew assured me, from her position across the cafeteria table from me. “He’s Shane. He doesn’t die that easily. At least, he didn’t the first time.”

I let out a sigh, saying, “Yeah, I know. But… I mean, we don’t know where he is, we don’t even know if he’s okay, and he has no fucking way to get home. I feel so fucking helpless.”

“He’ll be fine.” Zack told me. “He’ll find some way to contact us, and we can get to him, and get him back. All we need is to know his location.”

“But why can’t he call us?” I asked. “What’s keeping him from just fucking calling and telling us where he’s at?”

“It’s a protection around the Hall.” Mew explained. “The only reason that your guys’ mask mics can is because I’ve modified them. No calls in, no calls out.”

“Damn it.” I sighed out. “That fucking protection is biting us in the ass.”

“Yeah.” Zack agreed, pulling out his phone. “Speaking of which, the others are probably about to wake up. We should talk to Arceus. Get her to call a meeting to tell everyone.” He sighed in annoyance, adding, “Moltres and Entei will probably throw a fucking party.”

“They do, and they die.” I heard a voice behind me. I turned around, to see Arceus in the doorway, as she said, “I will not hesitate to kill them.”

“But I thought that Legends can’t die?” Zack asked.

“Not necessarily.” Arceus replied, as I looked at her closer. “Very few know this, but Reaper weapons can kill anything, should their true power be accessed.”

“But only one Reaper has ever done that.” Mew continued. “And we swore long ago that we would never bring him into this. He’s gone through so much already; we can’t drag him from his family. For the second time.”

“I know.” Arceus answered, as my eyes traced the tear tracks down her fur. “But if someone celebrated his death, he would never stand for it. Not with how important he is to him.”

“I guess.” The pink cat agreed. “But we shouldn’t have him come. That’d be disastrous.”

* * *

** P.O.V Change: Shane **

Lex and I stepped off of the Osprey, our feet kicking up sand.

“Well, here we are.” Jet-Star told us, stepping out with us. “Only a few miles outside of the town. Your ride is over there.”

He pointed over next to us, causing us to turn. We turned to see a black Dodge Challenger sitting close by, a fresh dusting of sand lying on it.

Lex chuckled, commenting, “You guys really know how to set us up in style.”

“Tell Rico that he has absolutely cleaned up all debt with me.” I told the Zoroark.

“Maybe so!” Came the Zangoose’s reply from the plane. “But I’ll always help you if yah fight for da cause, amigo!”

“And if you ever need some vigilante work done,” I called back, “hit me up!”

“Same here!” Lex added.

“We’ll be sure to remember that.” Jet told me, digging into his pocket. He pulled out a small cloth sack, holding it out to me, as he said, “Here. Take this.” I accepted the sack, looking in to find a wad of money, as Jet added, “This one is a gift. Two hundred.”

“Thank you, Jet-Star.” Lex replied.

“No problem.” The Zoroark said, stepping back into the plane. “We’re out, guys. I advise getting in the car before we dust off.”

We nodded, rushing over to the car as the propellers began spinning. We got into the car, Lex in the driver’s seat and me in the passenger’s, to watch as the Osprey flew off.

As we watched the metal bird fly away, Lex spoke, “So, I guess that we’re on our own now, eh?”

I sighed quietly, replying, “It appears so.”

My father waited for a moment, before putting his hand on my shoulder, telling me, “C’mon, it isn’t all that bad. At least we’re together.”

I nodded, smiling at him, replying, “Yep.” I looked at the town in the distance, asking, “So, ready to go?

“That depends.” He said. “You ready to have your first nonviolent interactions outside of the Hall in almost a year?”

I chuckled, answering, “Let’s fucking go.”


End file.
